The Show Must Go On
by RoseInTheWater
Summary: Theater is a dying art, kept alive by those who love it. But what happens when it's kept alive only by the people who lust after those who love it? Down on her luck Guinevere turns to the one place left looking to hire, a resort own by the fabulously wealthy Pendragon's without any idea what she's signed up for. Modern Moulin Rouge inspired AU
1. Chapter 1

Curtains Rise

_Love is a many splendid thing; love lifts us up where we belong…_

_All we need is love._

* * *

The city during the day was far less impressive than at night, without all it's parties and it's grandeur the city seemed to rest more during the day than it ever did when the sun was down. It wasn't calm, people still pushed and shoved tourists out of their way to make it to their jobs in time, hustlers still lined street corners to sell whatever they could, and the cars of the fabulously wealthy still paraded down the avenues in search of their next source of entertainment. The city simply seemed to be allowing it's self to recover before starting the nightly celebration over again.

It was a peaceful chaos that could spit a person out just as quickly as it could make them King of the world.

And Gwen loved it.

Her bank account however, did not.

Finding a way to stay in the city she had grown to love so much became more of a trial than anything else. Rent was high and with her brother Elyan's recent attraction to military life Guinevere had found her self alone in the city with small temp jobs here and there to keep from wasting the last of her father's inheritance. Due to budget cuts however, staying in a job long enough to support herself had become nearly impossible.

The last chance she had to stay in her beloved city lay on a small piece of paper baring the instructions to the last place in town she knew to be hiring. Slipped into her hand by a skinny man with slightly too large ears the piece of paper seemed to burn a hole in her pocket until she agreed to look into it further. And though nightclubs and high-end resorts were never her forte everyone knew the Pendragon name paid incredibly well.

Against her better judgments and the small amount of dignity she had left Gwen found her self staring up at one of—if not the most—infamous resorts in the city.

The Camelot Resort and Casino. Built like something from a fairytale the rumors surrounding it were just threatening enough to keep a fresh batch of employees every year along with a constant flow of loyal guests and brave tourists. It was the last place a girl as goodhearted as Gwen needed to go, but it was also the last place willing to take her in.

So with a determined sigh and a small prayer to whoever was listening the small girl found herself striding proudly through the marble doorway, intent on outlasting whatever trouble the secrets of the wealthy tried to cause.

xXx

"You need a vacation." The voice came over Arthur's phone for the forth time that day. Despite the fact the response to each call has been an abrupt dropped call or a few foul words. No amount of disregard seemed to stop Arthur's phone from ringing.

"I've told you Merlin. I'm too busy to just walk out on things here," Arthur said with a groan.

"You wouldn't be walking out on things, you'd just be changing offices! Besides if you took me along it'd be a work expense or something." The voice continued, barely able to hide it's excitement over the prospect of a vacation. "What's the point of owning all those big hotels if you can't stay there anyway! It'll be fun, I promise."

With an exasperated sigh Arthur leaned back in his office chair, looking at the rather disorganized room around him. Papers falling off his desk, picture frames bumped out of place by slammed doors and rushed meetings, the remnants of lunch shoved away in a trashcan along with the latest economics report. Perhaps it was time to step back from the clutter and relax.

His father still had time left to finish the business proposals before retiring and their direct family had yet to frequent one of their many luxury resorts. The majority of the work had been completed already anyhow, so taking one small vacation to enjoy his youth couldn't really be seen as avoiding his duties.

There would be time to work on things at the resort anyway, it would simply be a check up on another branch of the Pendragon empire.

"Fine," Arthur said with a small smile escaping his lips, "We can go on_ one_ vacation I suppose. But you're still going to be working Merlin. Don't think you're getting off that easily."

"I wish it were that easy." Merlin's excitement was so large Arthur could practically hear him smiling. "I'll get the plane tickets and we'll be there by tomorrow night."

xXx

After what had seemed like an eternity of strange and moderately invasive interview questions Gwen found herself waiting in the lobby of the Camelot resort, watching enviously at the women walking by with their designer getups and perfectly tamed hair. It was as though she'd been placed in the presence of lords and ladies from all over the world but simply did not know any of their names. The interview room wasn't any better; in fact Gwen was the only woman there who didn't look ready to seduce the interviewer.

She counted too.

Caught up so thoroughly in her own fantasies as people too wealthy to do anything but spend their money Gwen barely noticed as a tall and gorgeous brunette walked up in front of her, handing a small form for her to sign.

"Guinevere Leodegrance?" The woman's voice chimed, snapping Gwen back to reality.

"Yes?"

A smile crossed the woman's flawlessly pale face, flashing stunningly white teeth. "My name is Morgana Pendragon. I'd let to welcome you to the resort. If you'd sign the disclosure form I'll start giving you a tour. You're going to be very busy around here."

The automatic looks of disdain for Gwen shot like daggers form the other applicants eyes, unbeknownst to Gwen she had managed to secure one of the most sought after openings this side of town. Though none of the women looked like the particularly needed the job there was something about the promise of working under the Pendragon's that drew people of all backgrounds together and left them fighting for a spot.

With a parade of 'thank-you's' Gwen took the form, signing anywhere she could, barely reading the fine print. What she did manage to read during her frantic skimming was slightly perplexing though. The promise of work and of allegedly being kept very busy seemed to hold a longer lifespan than the contract stated. Claiming she would be required to undergo a trial week before being given the full job. No more details about what occurred after that trail week were mentioned however, so Gwen shrugged it off as a small technicality.

"You'll be working as a waitress for the time being, we're always short staffed there," Morgana explained as she waited on the contract. "Once that's done though you'll be working for me. You'll be our new starlet, isn't that exciting!"

Handing the contract up Guinevere couldn't help but smile at the woman's enjoyment even if she didn't quite understand why it was happening. "I'm sure it will be."

"Now follow me," Morgana said with a sisterly smile. "There is still so much to do before you can start, and we haven't even begun to talk about where you'll be working in here." Leading Gwen from the loby the smile never left Morgana's face, her own agenda running through her head almost as fast as her explanation of the resort's customs.

_Oh yes, she'll do._ Morgana thought. _She'll do quite nicely._


	2. Chapter 2

Opening Night 

**A.N.: Thank you so much for the positive feedback so far! This is my first fic and I have to admit I was a little nervous about posting. If you have and questions or ideas please put them in the review or message me! Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoy! **

* * *

"You'll find that once you know your way around here you'll barely ever need to use facilities outside of the resort," Morgana's voice echoed as she led Gwen through a quick overview of the Camelot. At least she claimed it was the quicker version, despite the fact they had been walking for at least an hour. "The pool is open until midnight, but if you speak to the cleaners before hand they'll leave it open. I can't guarantee the bar beside it would want to wait around though."

Gwen looked to her left, seeing a pool that looked more like a fairytale grotto than an actual hotel pool. A statue of some angle holding up a soft blue light in her hands that flooded the pool in an eerie wash of color that only added to the dream like feel. From the structure built to conceal a secret passageway to a smaller secluded poor to the waterfall pouring down across a slide made to look like a rock formation. But before Gwen could even comment on her awe she found herself being dragged away from the oasis to the next point in the tour.

"The girls you'll be working with like to spend their free time either there or in the resorts gym. We've got more things there than I know the name for, but what's really important is the dance studio I had built in the back. We've had company's come by to use it over the ones their theaters offered its so nice." The pride Morgana felt was obvious. "You'll be able to go there before and after your shifts. We recommend it."

_I'm not sure if that's a complement or not…_ Gwen thought as she followed the proud woman through the remainder of the resort, never getting an opportunity to stay in one place as long as she wanted to. The amount of opulence within the rooms they had managed to visit was almost as overwhelming as if Morgana had tried to shove a rich chocolate cake down Gwen's throat without giving her time to breath. "Not that I don't appreciate this ma'am," Gwen piped up, "but it'd be nice if I could see where I am actually supposed to work."

Morgana stopped in her tracks, almost causing Gwen to run into her. Staring back at the smaller woman with an unreadable expression on her face that managed to scare Gwen back a few steps. The taller woman's eyes two dark and intimidating orbs that never once left the smaller woman's face, even when she smiled. "Of course. That was our next stop anyway. I needed to lead up to it you know." Her words, though sweet, practically dripped with poison, daring Gwen to cut her off again.

Meekly Guinevere nodded, staying quiet as she was lead into what Morgana called the 'crowning jewel' of the resort. Built into the side of the building having originally been the largest structure in town before the city blossomed around it more recently an old Broadway size theater stood, offering shows to both guests in the resort of people off the street. It's size alone was like nothing Gwen had ever seen. The grand pillars leading towards golden staircases and elevators with matching plagues pointing out the different levels in seating, the red carpet trailing down from the stairs to the isles of orchestra seating, converted into a dining area that rivaled any five star restaurant.

The dinning addition wasn't the only renovation Gwen noticed. In front of the stage in what Morgana said was called orchestra seating was a dance floor, matching the thrust built into the stage, making the dark wood come down from the large stage into what would have been the most sought after seats.

"This is incredible…" Gwen muttered, watching as several women moved out onto the dance floor, starting what she could only assume was a rehearsal of some sort.

"It was my idea," Morgana said, swelling with pride. "I went off the old burlesque theaters that used to be in the area, we get more profits from here than we do from anything else aside from resort bookings." Walking Gwen towards the group of women Morgana clapped twice to get their attention, going forward to kiss the cheeks of a tall woman with auburn hair. "Mithian, I want you to meet our new serving girl. She'll be watching the show tonight."

Mithian's eyes surveyed Guinevere closely, making her shift uncomfortably, feeling as though she was being stared down by some fearsome predator. "That's nice." Her soft voice broke the tension. "It's been a while since we've had someone new here. I hope you last." The sweet smile on her face wasn't enough to mask the unspoken threat behind her words. Somehow Gwen figured she had to do with the last person quitting.

Before any of the other dancers could catch onto Mithian's tone Morgana shooed them away, going on about an important guest who they needed to impress. Taking Gwen's arm Morgana led her away from the women, not letting her get distracted by the music starting to play through the theater.

"You'll be able to see them tonight. Mithian always gets a standing ovation."

xXx

"I'm still not sure why going here of all places is necessary."

Luggage was thrown across the penthouse floor. The obviously separation between the two occupants defined clearly by one side of the room having a slight system to the placement of the luggage while the opposite side of the room was lucky if there was any flooring visible.

"Because," came a voice from the cluttered half of the room, "I like it here. I got to visit last month when your cousin needed help."

Arthur shook his head, never being given a satisfactory response to the question no matter how many times he asked. "I just think there are better places we could have gone. Now Morgana's wrapping us into seeing that show of hers and I'd much rather get some sleep. That flight was terrible."

"Well next time you should agree earlier so I don't have to book them last minute." Merlin emerged from the pile of clothes on the floor, having managed to find the closest thing to a suit he owned. "Now get dressed. I don't want to be late. I've heard it's a good show too."

With a roll of his eyes Arthur began to get dressed, not paying much attention to Merlin raving about musicals he had seen when he lived with his mother. Arthur had no interest in seeing people running around singing than he had in helping Merlin tie his tie. The only reason he had agreed to go at all was to keep Merlin from driving him mad.

Their seats were close to the stage, or at least as close as they could get with the extra floor placed in the orchestra. To Arthur's surprise the seats were more comfortable than he expected, almost as if he was at a lounge instead of some old theater.

"Can I get you two anything before the show?" A sweet voice broke through Arthur's haze, much to Merlin's excitement.

A pair of dark brown eyes watched Arthur innocently, throwing him off from his usual order of scotch as he stared up to the waitress. "Any… Anything is fine," he managed to get out, eliciting a small snicker from Merlin.

Unsure of what caused him to loose his train of thought Arthur pulled back, taking a moment to look over the unfamiliar face smiling down at him.

"If you say so, sir." The girl smiled, picking the menus off the table. "I'll bring something back by the time the first number is over."

Practically sensing the question on Arthur's lips Merlin piped up. It was as if he had planned to leave Arthur dumbstruck and judging by the smirk he couldn't hide to save his life he was rather pleased with himself. "What's your name? Just in case we need something."

Spinning back on her heels, picking the menus off another table, the girl smiled. "Guinevere, but you can call me Gwen."


	3. Chapter 3

A Little Party

_In the theater we suspend our disbelief so for a moment, just one moment, we can all be something beside ourselves._

* * *

The excited buzzing in Gwen's head refused to stop. Only an hour into her new job and she had already been given a gracious tip and been asked if she was a part of the show by two older gentlemen. But the buzzing in her head wasn't from any complement or amount of money, something strange had kicked in when she visited the couple she could only assume where close friends of the production based off their seats.

The blonde man had barely spoken to her yet his voice intoxicated Gwen in a way she couldn't understand. It was as if they had met before some time far to long ago for either to remember. Even the bartender sensed something strange was going on, clearing his throat to bring her back to earth.

"Now's not the time to get ditzy on us, doll," the man smiled, his long brown hair tied back out of his face. "We've got the dancers for that."

Gwen couldn't help but laugh in agreement, watching the curtain rise to a hoard of scantily clad women dancing some foreshadowing number about the protagonist's future. Their skirts swinging up to tease the nearest members of the audience with surprisingly bedazzled undergarments. "Do you think they ever get tired of wearing those things? They don't seem comfortable."

The man whose name she had learned before her shift to be Gwaine simply smiled, obviously not having cared about the comfortable level of the dancers before she brought it up. "Let me tell you something about those dancers, for future reference," he started, handing her two drinks for the front table. "If they do their job well, at the end of the night they have enough money to forget about any bruise or scratch those pretty little things cause."

Taking the drinks with a smile Gwen left for the front table, watching as the women danced around energetically, their smiles convincing everyone in the audience how happy they were to be selling the idea of love to hundreds of different people. Even Gwen found her self-believing that with the right amount of hip gyrations and flashes of skin she could make the audience fall in love with her.

With the an outrageous amount of applause from the audience Gwen placed the drinks down at the front table, smiling down to the handsome blonde man for the second time that night. "Enjoying the show so far?" she asked.

"So far so good!" the thinner man on the opposite side of the table replied, covering for his friend's silence. "Why don't you take a seat? The lead's about to come on and it's rude to be walking around during a performance."

A momentary panic flashed through the blonde's eyes as Gwen could almost swear she heard him kick the smaller man underneath the table. "You shouldn't be so forward Merlin," he said in a strained whisper as the opening notes for the next song began to play. "She's busy working, something I know you're not too familiar with."

Before Gwen could defend the smaller man the lighting throughout the theater changed. A soft blue lighting covered the stage as a spotlight shown down on a single woman in a long glittering dress, her presence absorbing the attention of every person in the theater. Much to Gwen's disdain, for that one grand entrance she couldn't find a single fault in Mithian's face as she began to sign with the music, enchanting the blonde man in front of her.

The music continued, picking up pace as the dancers began to intertwine their paths with Mithian's grabbing at her dress to take off the long skirt, revealing a skimpier garment than any of the other dancers. Her movements became quick and fluid, dancing down to the floor level with the aid of several male dancers, doting on her with lustful eyes.

Yet not once did Mithian's gaze leave the front table. Transfixing the blonde into believing the dance was for him, though Gwen could only assume his friend had fallen for her as well.

Her dance was intoxicating even if she didn't' want to admit it. Guinevere tried her hardest to keep from staring, but once Mithian moved down to the front table and flashed a dazzlingly bright smile towards the blonde she knew it was time to leave. Without a word to Merlin or his friend, doubting they would have noticed anyway.

As Gwen walked away she noticed Mithian, with the aid of the doting male dancers, manage to get up onto the top of the table. Both men's eyes were glued up as she danced on top of the table, following her as she knelt down to pull the blonde's silk tie from under his jacket. His face flushing deep red as she placed one kiss on his cheek, leaving a bright red lipstick mark in her tracks as she moved down from the table with a wink.

_Well someone's looking for extra tips_. Gwen thought, not entirely sure why she felt jealous of a man whose name she didn't even know. Taking a moment to shake off the feeling Gwen heard the song end and not once did she bother to return to the front table.

xXx

The show ended with a standing ovation as it did every night. Mithian took her bow, again as she did every night. The girls ran backstage eagerly waiting and gossiping about the requests coming in for their services, as they did every night. And as happened every night Mithian waited for the highest paying customer to put in their bid for her attention.

But none came.

"Check the requests again," she ordered a stagehand. "Morgana must still be trying to rake up the price."

The stage hand looked up to Mithian confused. "There are no more requests ma'am. You weren't requested."

Unable to believe the man Mithian stormed off the stage, heading back to Morgana's office across from the dressing rooms. She was always requested. She was the lead! The only way she wouldn't have been requested was if Morgana hadn't allowed her to be requested in the first place and that only happened for first times and people about to be let go. Mithian had worked too hard to be let go now.

"What is the meaning of this?" Mithian barged into the office unannounced.

"That depends on what you're fussing about this time," Morgana said disinterested. A pile of bills and checks on her desk sorted out by who they were meant to purchase. "If you're talking about my taking you off the bill then I have nothing to say."

Mithian felt her throat begin to close up as her body started to shake. Everything she had done was to stay in the spotlight and move from their stage to a real theater, to become a real actress. She had done everything right; the wealthiest men in the audience should be fighting her for right now, not groveling for a cut of the profits.

"I wont let you do this! I'm the best girl you have! You can't just toss me aside!" _This can't be happening, I can't be fired!_

"Mithian stop your whining. You know very well you've been here longer than any of the other girls." Morgana went right back to counting her money. "Keeping you here has cost me a lot of talent, I'm not a fool. I know you framed that last girl for stealing money, and the girl before that had no problems with her ankle until she had to borrow your shoes. You've simply become more trouble than you're worth." The pile where Mithian's cut usually sat was bare. "I'll let you stay but once this show closes we wont be needing you as our lead. Vivian can take your spot until we have a routine for our investor."

"Morgana please! I can handle the investor! You can't put me in the back now! Vivian won't know the first thing about keeping a conversation up or actually winning a man over!"

For the first time during their meeting Morgana's eyes met Mithian's, sending a threatening glare towards the dancer. "Vivian won't be handling the investor. I'll be finding someone new to replace you. Now I suggest you leave before I do have you fired." With a dismissive wave of the hand Morgana returned to her work. "And tell Guinevere to clean off the stage. She could do with seeing the view."

xXx

_He would forget his wallet_.

Arthur walked back into the theater for the second time that night, having been tricked into retrieving Merlin's wallet for him when he left for the bathroom to not return. He figured this was a strange roundabout way to get back at him for managing to get a kiss from the lead girl when Merlin couldn't even get their waitress to bring them a second round of drinks.

Of course he would have liked to see the waitress return to their table as well. Something about the girl left him muddled up inside but he wasn't about to let that affect his better judgment. If she worked for Morgana that already meant he was better off keeping a safe distance from her. Nothing good ever came from the showgirls.

_Merlin thought she was rather cute though, what was her name again…Gwen-something…_ Arthur let his thoughts wander as he walked back up to the front table, finding Merlin's wallet picked clean of any cash he had. _Of course, that was probably whatever he bothered to bring too._ With a small sigh Arthur picked up the wallet, fully planning on heading back out until he saw the girl from earlier sitting on the edge of the stage, staring up to the higher seats.

Any thoughts he had before vanished, he could barely even remember why he returned in the first place. All he knew was he wanted to talk to her, but for the life of him couldn't find the words.

"Its um… it's better if you stand up, I'd assume," he managed to get out automatically regretting not having thought of something smarter.

The girls head turned down to him sharply, her curls bouncing around her face as she began to turn pinker in her cheeks, obviously not knowing she wasn't alone.

"I needed to sit down," she replied. "I haven't been off my feet since this morning."

Arthur knew he should leave it at that. Morgana's employees were all bad news. And yet he found himself walking over to the stage.

"Do you mind if I sit with you then? Merlin and I never got the chance to have you join our table."

"If I remember correctly you were a bit busy sir," the girl said, her blush not leaving her cheeks. "You can sit if you like though, I don't own the place. My name is Guinevere, just incase you forgot."

Something in her tone through Arthur off. It was as if she was blaming him for having the dancer come to their table. He didn't mind it though; she still agreed to let him join her.

"And mine is Arthur," he said, easily pulling himself up to sit beside her on the main stage. "Just incase I forgot to mention."

A small smile came out across Guinevere's face causing Arthur to smile himself.

"You did. But I'm sure you can find a way to make up for it." Her smile grew. "I need some help cleaning this place."


	4. Chapter 4

Preparations

_One day I'll fly away, leave all this to yesterday. Why live life from dream to dream…_

* * *

As grateful as she was for the help, Guinevere couldn't help but find the man's lack of skill when it came to cleaning was almost pathetic. They had split the stage into half in order to cover more ground and while her side was clean enough to reflect the stage lights overhead Arthur's side was still covered in confetti from the final number and wouldn't reflect a single light. It was almost as if he had never even had to clean anything before.

"You know just pushing it around isn't going to get you anywhere," she said, placing her mop back into the bucket at the front of the stage.

"I'm sweeping. What's so wrong with that?" Arthur gestured to the small pile of dust accumulating at his feet.

It was almost humorous how little of the stage he had managed to clean in the time it took her to do her entire half.

"Well for starters your only getting the stuff to move into a pile." Gwen walked over to his side of the stage, pushing the mop and bucket with her. "You have to sweep it quickly then mop everything afterwards." Taking the broom from him she began to show him how to sweep properly, getting a larger section done in only a few moments. "You act like you've never had to clean the floor before. Your kitchen must be a disaster."

Continuing to clean the stage Gwen managed to work around the now silent man, focusing too much on her job to consider why he chose now to be quiet. He'd been complaining about the smell of the mop water the entire time along with the amount of glitter on the stage. She had become so accustomed to hearing his complaints that the silence was almost uncomfortable.

"Well I wouldn't know, the chef doesn't allow anyone back there unless she's had it cleaned," he said finally, almost as if it was the obvious response.

Gwen looked back from her cleaning expecting to see him smiling to give away the joke. His face however, made him seem just as confused as she was.

"You have a chef… like a personal chef?" she clarified, cleaning while they spoke.

"Yes. Though she's not with me at the moment, she doesn't like to travel."

This was all absurd. People who have the money for personal chefs didn't bother to hang around theaters after closing to talk to waitresses, and they certainly didn't agree to help with the cleaning.

"Who are you anyway?" Gwen began to mop up the remainder of the stage, leaving it sparkling clean.

"Arthur Pendragon," he said without a moment's hesitation, finding nothing strange in their current situation at all. "My father owns these resorts and my cousin runs these silly little shows, I'm sure you've met her, she's rather hard to miss."

Unable to even think of where to being apologizing for goofing off in front of the owners son Guinevere quickly finished her cleaning, shoving everything back into a closet backstage.

"I'm sorry, s-sir. You and Morgana don't look alike so I didn't even think that that would be why you…" Gwen caught herself rambling, too embarrassed that she couldn't recognize someone who could very easily have her fired just for making fun of how he couldn't clean.

"Guinevere," Arthur chuckled. "Relax, I'm just here on vacation. I'm just like any other guest at the resort, you don't have anything to worry about."

Something about the way he said her full name made her pause, coming back down from her small panic. The small smile on his lips made her stomach knot, and for a moment she thought about how the few stray pieces of glitter stuck to his skin made him all the more enjoyable to look at. But before she could even open her mouth to accept his small gift of security the theater doors swung open. The silhouette of a rather gangly man breaking the privacy of the empty theater instantly.

"Arthur, come on! Honestly how long does it take you to get a wallet—" The man's voice trailed off as he saw both Arthur and Gwen on stage, his smile becoming more noticeable as he walked forward to the pair. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were… Well I'm not exactly sure what you are doing anyway."

"Merlin." The obvious strain in Arthur's voice made Gwen smile, he seemed to appreciate the interruption even less than she did. "You certainly took your time coming back."

"Got lost, it's a big place." Merlin gave Gwen a wave, motioning for Arthur to follow him out. "We really should head back though, I don't want to be up all night unpacking."

Reluctantly Arthur left the stage, giving Merlin one good shove in the direction of the door before looking back at Guinevere. The look in his eyes escaped Gwen, though for a moment they almost seemed to have darkened simply by being pulled away from her but it must have just been the fact the stage lights couldn't fully reach the audience.

"I'll see you around then. It was very nice meeting you, Guinevere."

xXx

_I used to be so happy…_

Mithian's dressing room was nearly empty now. She had been packing away her things since she had received the news of her demotion to the chorus lines. Though technically she still had a job, everyone in show business knows that if a lead loses her part so unceremoniously her career is over. No matter who they were, if they lose their role they lose purpose.

And no one kept around something without a purpose.

_I was the star, I did everything right. All I did was make sure I stayed on top. It's what Morgana would have wanted._ Mithian ran her hands across her costume, the crystals sewn into the bodice weighing it down substantially. _I gave everything to make you love me, I was the favorite and this is how you treat me?_

She had no use for the costume now, but she couldn't simply part with it after everything it had done for her. She had been offered publicity spreads and small television deals by different agents who had seen her dance, even a few advertisements in smaller fashion magazines that knew the Pendragon name allowed her a spread or two. She was so close to having everything she had given up pay off in her become a real respectable actress and now all her plans were shattered all because Morgana decided she was too much trouble for the business.

Placing the costume in her suitcase Mithian began to wonder if she would even be allowed to stay in the suites considering her employment was practically terminated. If she lost the suite she would have to pay for her own place somewhere else in the city, she would have to leave the resort if she lost her paycheck.

_I need to stay here. I need to get back my role._

Mithian began to zip up her suitcase, noticing a picture that had fallen from her vanity mirror. The smiling faces of her original cast mates looking back up to her with wide hope filled eyes. Her own face showing so much of the innocence she had since abandoned to make it as far as she had in the business, it left cold numbness running through her body.

The photo never affected her like that before today; she never had a reason to think of it as anything more than a happy piece of memorabilia. But now that she had lost everything the girl in the photo was looking to achieve she couldn't help but wish to forget how many dreams she had placed in the glittering costumes and heavy makeup.

The doe eyed look each of Morgana's favorite dancers entered with was almost sickening to Mithian know, despite the fact the photo was proof she had it too at one point. Now that she thought about it the new girl from earlier in the day had the same look in her eyes. Perhaps that was why Mithian wanted her to leave so badly, she was a threat, she was meant replace her. It was then Mithian realized something.

Morgana had hired her replacement before she even left the building.

xXx

It hadn't been more than a few days since they arrived and Merlin could already tell convincing Arthur to leave would be even harder than convincing him to come. Though Merlin had hoped for Arthur to enjoy himself he couldn't have predicted how quickly he would take to the pretty waitress with the sweet brown eyes. He barely knew anything about Guinevere besides her name but he spent every moment around Merlin trying to find an excuse to bump into her.

He knew Arthur thought he was subtle and if Gwen hadn't been so busy with Morgana it would have all backfired in his face. To Arthur's delight though, she seemed completely unaware of his convenient appearances to be anything more than coincidence.

As happy as Merlin was for his friend, he couldn't help but feel as though he'd bitten off more than he could handle by trying to get the two together. Arthur was falling fast in his own strange way and Guinevere seemed to become more and more dependant on Morgana instead. He doubted she even realized the cousins playing a tug-of-war for her attention but he doubted it would end innocently.

He'd gotten Arthur into trouble before but never anything he wasn't certain he could get him out of. For the first time since he was hired Merlin was walking Arthur into a situation blind, knowing that there may not be a light waiting at the end of the tunnel.

"She's busy with Morgana again," Merlin pointed out, having been waiting in the gym with Arthur for Gwen's dance lesson to let out. He wasn't so sure why the lessons were part of her employee perks, but she had never missed a lesson since they arrived at the resort despite Arthur's best efforts to distract her. "We can always find her later, when you don't smell like gym socks."

Arthur simply grunted to push aside Merlin's comment. He had spent the past hour occupying his time by working out to try and appear as though he wasn't simply waiting for Gwen's class to let out. Though Merlin couldn't deny it helped with the other dancers that spotted him on their way to the class he doubted Gwen would be the type to fall for someone simply because they managed to glisten when they sweat. Especially when they stunk.

"You just don't want to be reminded of how small you are, Merlin," Arthur stated, watching the dancers leave as the class let out, sitting straighter whenever someone similar to Gwen's size walks out. "She'll be out soon."

Dozens of dancers walked by, giggling to themselves or making small passes at Arthur as they left, but not a single one of them was the woman he was waiting to see.

Peaking his head into the studio Merlin could see Gwen deep in a conversation with the lead from the other night, her eyes surveying Guinevere like a hawk. Unable to hear the entire conversation Merlin could only relay certain pieces. "Gwen needs new shoes…Something about broken ankles…The other lady is talking about private lessons. Arthur I really don't think she has time to talk to you."

Arthur opened his mouth to protest, only to be silenced when the two women walked out of the studio, Gwen pinned to the taller woman's side like a child. Their eyes meeting for a brief moment before the woman pulled Gwen away.

"The audition is tomorrow, and Morgana is going to try and make things difficult for you." The woman gave Arthur small smile. "You can't get distracted, Gwen. I promise, you listen to my advice and you'll be topping the playbill in no time."

Gwen mouthed an apology to Arthur as she was pulled away, too involved in the conversation to simply leave. It was enough to slow Arthur for the moment but Merlin knew very well he shouldn't be expecting to see his friend back in the penthouse until at least an hour after Guinevere's shift ended.

Merlin only hoped Arthur wasn't setting himself up for disappointment


	5. Chapter 5

The audition

"...and sell your soul when dreaming ends?"

* * *

The night's show had ended with significantly less fanfare than it had with the old lead. Arthur doubted there was even half as many people in attendance without the old girl. He couldn't attest to any difference in their performance, he hadn't bothered with attending a show since Guinevere had told him when her shift ended anyway.

And if Arthur's watch was correct it should be over with soon.

He had been waiting since intermission for the show to end, checking his phone for different emails from work to kill time. However, he couldn't go very long until his thoughts wandered back to Guinevere. Everything about her had utterly bewitched him and as Merlin liked to point out, he hadn't been able to go a day without talking to her since they arrived.

It wasn't until the theater doors opened to let out the patrons that he even realized how much time he wasted just thinking about her. Hopefully Merlin would be the only person able to call him out for his daydreaming, he doubted he'd be able to come up with a good cover if Gwen herself noticed.

Waiting against the theater doors Arthur gave himself a few minutes to regain composure before walking in, seeing Gwen starting to clean the stage as usual.

"I hope they at least give you overtime for that," he said, having spent several minutes making up a better conversation starter than just a hello.

Gwen rewarded his effort with a small smile, motioning for him to join her on stage. "I've told you I like it up here. And if I'm lucky this will be my last time cleaning it for a while."

Arthur joined her onstage, taking a broom to start sweeping half of the stage for her, having improved greatly from his first attempt.

"Why's that? Are you finished with Morgana's hazing?" Arthur chuckled, knowing his cousin would take advantage of new employees without a second thought.

With a small shake of her head Gwen smiled, cleaning her portion of the stage with ease. "Something like that," she said, "tomorrow I'm auditioning to be one of those dancers. They need new girls for a new show their putting on and Morgana said I'll be allowed to go out for a real part this time."

The hope in Gwen's voice was evident, she obviously wanted a spot on stage badly, but Arthur was still unable to keep back a judgmental laugh. _She must be joking_, he thought, looking back to Guinevere expecting to see her joining in his laughter, only to find her dark brown eyes glaring down on him with a fierceness that could only mean he'd done something truly wrong.

"Y-you're serious?" Arthur asked, his amusement quickly fading.

"Of course I'm serious," Gwen said coolly, walking over to him to yank the broom from his hands. "Do you have something against the dancers?" Her question sounded far more like an accusation.

"No! No of course not, it's just, well everyone knows what they're like..." Arthur saw no change in Gwen's hostility. "You know, they're all rather loose, and you aren't that kind of girl! That's all I meant."

"You have no right to tell me what kind of girl I am or not." Gwen's harsh graze never left his. "And I'll have you know that being a dancer pays more than twice what I get for waiting tables. This may come as a shock to you but not everyone can live off their father's money, getting that job would let me keep my apartment and I'll have you know that I'm also just as good as any of those other dancers! So next time you want to come here to laugh at me save yourself the trouble and don't even bother coming in."

Arthur was taken aback, never having been spoken to like that by someone he was interested in before. He couldn't even remember the last time Merlin had called him out like she had. As Gwen turned her back to him and returned to cleaning the stage Arthur realized just how badly he had hurt her pride and possibly her trust in him as well.

Had it been anyone else Arthur would've accepted the turn of events and left with his own pride intact, but the idea of losing Gwen's trust was worse to him than having to swallow his own pride to go and get the broom back. Without a word from either of them Arthur got the broom and began to sweep beside Gwen, managing to clear more space with her help than on his own.

"I shouldn't have laughed." It was as close to an apology as he could manage.

Gwen didn't look up from her cleaning, only letting a small smile cross her lips. "No, you shouldn't have."

Somehow her small smile was all the reassurance Arthur needed to know she at least forgave him.

xXx

Guinevere hadn't spoken to Arthur after they had finished cleaning, though she could tell he wanted to there wasn't anything more she had to say. She had to at least pretend like she was upset with him. She was upset with him. He had no right to judge her over something he wouldn't have understood anyway, but at the same time she found herself having an incredibly difficult time staying upset with him.

It was those stupid blue eyes of his, she was sure of it. If they weren't so nice to look at managing to stay angry would have been so much simpler. She'd have to push how they glimmered whenever he smiled out of her head long enough to focus, she would be going up on stage in only a few minutes.

She stood in line behind several other dancers who had all worked with the company far longer than she had been around. Their clothes and shoes all shiny and new, obviously bought to impress Morgana and make the other dancers feel insecure. Of course the only person standing around without a new get up was Gwen. If it hadn't been for Mithian's sudden interest in how she did she wouldn't have been in dance clothes at all.

Forcing herself to forget about anything other than the dance Mithian had helped her prepare Gwen bounced on the tips of her toes, waiting until Morgana's sharp voice called out her name clearly for the whole theater to hear.

For the first time Gwen walked out onto stage on her own with people in the audience. At least when Arthur came into the theater she could spot him. Morgana's face was simply a silhouette with two others on either side of her. They called her name and what she would only assume was her audition number as she was signaled to get into place.

She could barely hear her music starting over the pounding sound of her heartbeat in her head. Going through the steps Mithian had taught her came as a rather jagged and labored process. Her own nerves getting the best of her, making the dance feel much more like a chore than something she enjoyed. And if she couldn't even enjoy herself there was no chance Morgana and her investors would either.

Taking a small breath before the music could pick up Gwen pushed all her nerves out into the audience, picturing for a brief moment that instead of the blinding lights and three people responsible for her fate that it was just Arthur, standing at the bottom of the stage as usual waiting for his invitation to join her. It was a small thought, barely given time to take root in her mind, but it was more than enough to move her forward.

The nerves didn't bother her after that. The music picked up and so did her movements, fast and fluid, catching herself with ease when her balance was thrown off. Whenever the music paused so did she, she could feel the strain in her muscles and just as they were about to give way the music allowed her to continue. For just a moment she allowed herself to imagine that the dance was for Arthur, to prove him wrong about what she could do and to let them have something that was uniquely theirs even if it was just for a moment.

And as quickly as she had found her rhythm the music ended, stopping Gwen in her tracks, leaving her panting heavily, noticing for the first time just how much energy the dance demanded from her.

Morgana stood up, pulling Gwen back to reality with a slow clap that her partners didn't share. Gwen couldn't see the look on her face, but something about the length of the clap was more reassuring than any smile.

"We'll get back to you by tomorrow, Gwen dear," Morgana finally said. "Go celebrate, you did wonderfully."

Guinevere's smile was so strong she could feel her cheeks start to ache. Through a parade of 'thank you's and grateful nods Gwen left the stage, grabbing her bag from the back wall and running out of the theater with a level of excitement she had never experienced before.

With her bag draped across her shoulder she ran out into the hallway attaching the theater to the resort, spotting Merlin and Arthur waiting around patiently for her to get out. She couldn't exactly tell why they were always waiting for her, but she was nonetheless thankful. Arthur turned towards her a bit surprised, obviously having been planning to say something with Merlin for a while, but Gwen had no time for well thought out apologies or anything else he had up his sleeve.

Without a word to either Arthur or Merlin Gwen ran over to Arthur, jumping into his arms for a hug, nearly knocking him off his feet. Merlin's laughter filling up the hallway as Gwen tried to express her thanks without squeezing the life out of Arthur. She doubted she could put into words how the idea of having him in the room helped, but the hug was close enough for her.

"It went well..?" Arthur asked, hugging Gwen back a bit unsure of whether or not to join in her excitement.

Gwen nodded, pulling herself away once she began to calm down, realizing she might have overstepped her bounds. Carefully she backed away, smiling up to him brightly. "I think, she said it was wonderful."

Arthur smiled, about to congratulate her when Merlin came up to hug her, not wanting to be left out of the celebration.

"That's great!" he said, completely ignoring Arthur's glare to the back of his head simply to bother him. "I know just how to celebrate too." The twinkle in Merlin's eye only made Gwen laugh, which simply made him smile wider.

Over Merlin's shoulder Gwen could see Arthur rolling his eyes. He may have been excited for Gwen, but he wasn't any keener to put up with Merlin's antics.

Thankfully Merlin ignored that fact as well.

"You ever been to the pool here, Gwen?"

xXx

Morgana sat in her office alone, going over the multiple audition tapes on her phone and the comments her partners had written in her notebook. They had a voice in picking the girls for the chorus, but nothing more.

The lead role was always a position she picked. If she was going to bill a girl as the company's sparkling diamond then she had to make sure she was willing to risk the investors not approving. She had chosen Mithian last time they were faced with a new investor and that choice had lasted them over a year, she'd even grown fond of how easy the girl was to manipulate when she first arrived.

Mithian, however, had grown to be rebellious and the last thing her business needed was something thinking they could break her rules and go off on their own. She needed loyalty, she needed obedience, but most of all she needed the investor.

And with a ping from her phone she got the final verdict on the matter, a small text from her new investor that didn't even bother with making the request a full sentence.

The investor needed Guinevere as badly as Morgana needed his money.

It was with that simple text that Guinevere got her role and that Morgana was promised enough money for an entirely new theater when the investor got her.


	6. Chapter 6

Bad For Business

_I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful life is, now you're in the world._

* * *

Merlin had been quick to drag Guinevere and Arthur away from the theater to the pool inside the resort. His childlike excitement was far to charming for Gwen to turn him down and she doubted that Merlin would have allowed Arthur to leave them anyway. The boyish grin on Arthur's face at the sight of the empty pool, however, made Gwen doubt he was any less excited than Merlin.

It took the two a grand total of two minutes before they were in the pool, their shirts and shoes and anything that couldn't get wet sat beside Gwen on one of the lounge chairs. Gwen kept herself dry, lying across a lounge chair to watch them happily.

"Come on chubby, you can't keep up?" Merlin teased Arthur, getting himself chased across the pool only to be shoved under the water.

Gwen laughed, knowing very well Arthur was anything but fat. She couldn't be sure why that was a sensitive spot for him, but judging from the clearly defined muscles on his chest he had no cause to be embarrassed.

It was only when Arthur turned back to look over to Gwen that she realized she had been staring. Quickly changing her focus from Arthur's chest to the now water logged Merlin wiping the water out of his eyes.

"You alright over there?" she asked, trying to keep from getting caught.

"Oh I'm fine! He does this stuff all the time," Merlin said, shooting a smirk in Arthur's direction. "He eats so much he's paranoid he'll wake up one day weighing twice what he does now."

"If you don't shut up I will drown you," Arthur warned, a pink tint coming over his cheeks.

"No you wont, Gwen would save me before you could drown me," Merlin said matter-of-factly, swimming back to the edge of the pool near Gwen. " 'Course you'd have to come in the water for that."

"If she doesn't want to come in that's fine, Merlin." Arthur's gaze barely managed to hide his disappointment. "Stop bothering her."

Gwen smiled, walking over to dip her feet into the pool, looking down to Merlin easily. "I can't just whip off my shirt and jump in like the two of you. I don't live here remember? I'd rather not take a cab home dripping wet."

With an innocent smile Merlin rested his chin on the edge of the pool, his hands inching over to her wrists. "It's fine, we can dry off your clothes back at our place. You can wear one of those fluffy resort robes if you don't have extra clothes in your bag."

The invitation was enticing and from the feel of the water on her feet alone Gwen knew she'd enjoy a swim. The idea of walking around wherever Merlin and Arthur stayed wasn't her favorite option, but it'd have to do.

With a small nod Gwen was about to accept the invitation but before she could get a single word out Merlin's hands grasped her wrists, pulling her into the pool quickly. It wasn't very deep so she popped back up easily, Merlin's laughter ringing in her ears as she tried to push her wet hair off her face. However, the tight ringlets sticking to her forehead with the weight of the water seemed to have other plans.

Glaring at Merlin from underneath her mop of hair Gwen splashed as much water as she could in his direction, eliciting laughter from behind the two of them. Turning around slowly Gwen caught Arthur laughing near the entrance to the pools hidden grotto. The way his eyes lit up when he smiled made Gwen's stomach jump, but he still wouldn't be allowed to get away with laughing at her.

"You think this is funny?" she asked, starting to swim towards him.

Arthur tried to stop himself, but the laughter never left his eyes even when he started shaking his head. Gwen swam close enough to get ready to splash Arthur, unable to keep from smiling herself at his annoying infectious laughter. The laughter quickly died as his eyes grew wide, staring past Gwen long enough to make her turn around.

"What are you—"

Gwen's question was cut off at the sight of Merlin standing beside the statue lighting up the pool. A devilish grin on his face threatening to jump into the pool to splash both her and Arthur causing them both to duck under the water to avoid him.

Once underwater Gwen felt a small tug on her hand, opening her eyes to see a blurry Arthur motioning for her to follow him to the grotto. Quickly the two swam through a short tunnel away from Merlin, popping up in a private pool large enough for only a handful of people.

Their laughter filled the small space, as the two couldn't get the look on Merlin's face out of their heads. They were so preoccupied by their own thoughts that they barely realized just how close to each other they were.

It wasn't until Arthur helped Gwen get the hair out of her face that the laughter stopped. Their eyes locked onto each other's with a longing that made Gwen's heart skip a beat. All it would take would be a small tilt of the head and they would have shared their first kiss then and there. Arthur's blue eyes had darkened as he looked down to her, telling her she had realized the same thing she had.

Despite herself Guinevere cleared her throat, pulling them both back to reality.

"We should go back, before Merlin thinks we've drowned." She could practically hear the longing in her voice before quickly going back through the tunnel, hoping the water would help clear her head.

xXx

"Twenty-thousand…Twenty-five…You keep going down and I'm not sure if you noticed but that's not getting you anywhere."

Morgana and her booker had been dancing around price points for over an hour now. Other bidders calling in, allowing her to push the price up as the primary investor tried to keep from spending too much money. Morgana was used to these tricks however, and every time he went down she only went up.

She could tell it infuriated her booker but that only made her want to go higher.

"Agravaine, if your man even wants to spend time with her it's going to cost him. Remind him she's brand new, she could be a virgin for all we know." Morgana smirked as the man on the other end of the phone went quiet. She knew the chances of hiring a virgin were slim to none, but just mentioning the word was enough to get the bidding back up.

"_He wants exclusivity,_" the man's voice said. "_Only him, no other clients._"

Quietly Morgana glanced over to her computer, seeing the other investors jump up their prices to keep from loosing. At this rate Guinevere would sell just as if not better than Mithian did when she joined.

"I don't like doing exclusivity, Agravaine. We risk a lot giving her only one client. So I'm sure you'd understand that changes things quiet a bit, he'll have to beat out all the other offers."

"_How much?_"

Morgana thought for a moment, binding Guinevere would give them a constant income, but it would all be dependant on whether or not the investor liked what they saw. For all intensive purposes having an exclusive client was the closest to marriage Morgana would be allowing her to get.

"Fifty-thousand for the initial purchase, thirty-thousand for additional nights." Morgana could practically hear her booker's heart stop. She hadn't even sold Mithian for that much money, but Mithian's investor wasn't asking for exclusivity.

The line was silent while he relayed the message to the investor. The offers on her computer stopped as the men scrambled to try and find a means of beating her price. It was only when Agravaine returned to the phone defeated that Morgana bothered to send the other bidders away.

"_He'll take it. He'll pay after he's gotten a chance to meet her,_" Agravaine said, barely able to hide his disappointment.

"Good. I'll be having a little party soon to introduce her to company. Bring your man along and I'll get the two together." Morgana smiled, making arrangements to have Gwen moved into the resort as soon as possible. "And don't worry, she wont have the slightest idea who he is. He can introduce himself on his own time."

xXx

It had taken a decent amount of time for the trio to run up to the penthouse without getting caught dripping all over the marble floors, and the fact Merlin had slipped twice on their way to the elevator didn't help either. Miraculously they had managed to make it back without being seen by anyone who could recognize them.

Convincing Guinevere that she didn't have to worry about ruining anything inside the penthouse on the other hand seemed to take even more time. Arthur doubted she had expected the flat to be as extravagant as it was and as she left with Merlin to toss her clothes in the wash he began to wonder if her own apartment was even as large as the penthouse.

Sitting beside full window Arthur waited patiently for Gwen to return, having washed the chlorine off and changed into something more comfortable as soon as she had walked off with Merlin. Staring out the window onto the city lights he tried his hardest to keep his mind from wandering back to seeing Gwen in front of him in the secret grotto.

Her big brown eyes staring back at him expectantly before something pulled them both back to earth. He could have kissed her then, he wanted to kiss her then. Everything that had been running through his head seemed to be going too fast for him to make sense of it and before he knew it she was gone.

All he wanted was to think clearly enough to understand why every time they were close he felt like he could barely breath without wanting to say her name. It was intoxicating and he knew Merlin had caught onto him. He could only wonder how long it would take Guinevere to find out.

"You mind if I sit down?" The soft voice pulled Arthur out of his thoughts.

Smiling down to him was a freshly showered Gwen. Her dark hair braided back to keep from dripping water all over the hard wood floor. Her arms wrapped tight around her body, keeping the soft white bathrobe from moving around too much. Despite her undone look Arthur found it near impossible to look away.

"Of course," he said, moving over to make room for her on the window seat.

Gwen sat beside him, her gaze quickly shifting from him to the cityscape outside the window. Her eyes scanning over everything as if she was afraid it would disappear the second she looked away.

"I've never been up this high before, you can see everything from up here," she said in awe.

"You get used to it after a while. I've seen more of the city from here than in person." Arthur watched Gwen continue to scan over everything, her entire body fighting to stay awake long enough to take everything in. "It's not as impressive in the morning but you can see farther. The first night we stayed here Merlin woke me up to watch the damn sunrise while we were still jet lagged," he chuckled.

"I bet it was worth it," Gwen said, a yawn escaping despite her best efforts. "I'd stay up all night to just watch everything from up here"

Arthur couldn't help but yawn after her, smiling softly as she rested her head on his shoulder. "If you can stay up that long I'll try to keep you company."

Gwen chuckled, leaning back against his chest without thinking much of it. Arthur could feel his cheeks heating up at the feeling of her body against his. Carefully he placed an arm around her waist to keep her from slipping off the window seat as she watched the city below them.

"Good," she muttered, her exhaustion from the day finally starting to set in. "I'll call a cab once my clothes are done."

Arthur listened as her voice trailed off, her eyes fighting to stay open to watch the city lights twinkle. Carefully he pulled her closer, letting her head rest against his chest as he placed his chin on top of her head. He still wanted to kiss her badly but the last thing he wanted was to break her trust. With a small sigh he leaned back against the wall, holding her close, letting her relax against him as they both looked down through the window.

xXx

The clothes had taken longer than Merlin told Gwen they would. He had expected only a few minutes to be necessary but the machine conveniently seemed to have problems with the dance fabric.

With the now clean clothes in hand Merlin walked back out into the living room, spotting both Guinevere and Arthur fast asleep beside the window. A small smirk crossing Merlin's lips as he placed the clothes on a coffee table, grabbing a throw blanket from the couch to drape over the two before he returned to his room.

_It's about time._


	7. Chapter 7

First Rehearsals

_Love makes us act like we are fools. Throw our lives away, for one happy day._

* * *

The sound of distant snoring slowly woke Gwen from her much needed sleep. Despite her best efforts to go back to sleep both the sunlight coming in from the window and the snoring kept her from returning to her pleasant dreams. Half awake she began to look around, trying to figure out where the annoying noise was coming from or why she had forgotten to close her blinds.

It was only when her pillow started moving underneath her that she woke up enough to remember where she was. The snoring getting louder in her ear as she felt a small pressure around her waist tighten, pulling her closer against the slowly rising and falling pillow.

Looking up careful not to move too much and risk waking Arthur up Gwen could just barely see his head leaning back against the wall. His head turned away from in the window in an attempt to block the sunlight. Despite his strong jaw line and the slight stubble appearing on his chin his entire face seemed to soften as he slept. He'd almost have a childlike innocence to him if it weren't for the broad muscles across his chest.

The broad muscles Guinevere just realized she had been sleeping on all night.

Trying her best to keep from overreacting she carefully moved his arm off her waist, laying it across his chest in place of her weight. Slowly she inched down from the window seat to pick up her clothes she could only assume Merlin had left on the coffee table. The wood floor creaked slightly underneath her feet as she went to pick up her dance bag from the couch.

Too preoccupied with trying to be quiet Guinevere hadn't even noticed the fact the snoring had stopped.

"Goin' somewhere..?" Arthur's groggy voice muttered from behind her.

Feeling her cheeks heat up at being caught Gwen slowly turned around, keeping the bathrobe tight around her.

"I shouldn't have fallen asleep," she said, slowly making her way back to Arthur. "Thank you for letting me stay."

With a groan Arthur sat up, stretching himself out from having slept in such an odd position. His muscles straining as he forced them awake. Guinevere found it nearly impossible to keep from staring. If she hadn't known better she would have thought his little show was on purpose.

"You don't have to thank me, Guinevere. Though next time you stay over maybe we should at least sleep on the couch." A small smile waking up his face easily.

Sitting back beside Arthur Gwen gave him a playful shove, managing to move him back against the wall easily while he chuckled. He didn't seem like much of a morning person and had the sunlight not been so bright she doubted it would've taken him very long to fall back asleep. The sweet glances he made back to her however, almost made him seem happy to be awake so early.

"What makes you think I'd want to stay over again?" She asked, helping him calm his hair down.

"I…I don't know," Arthur said genuinely searching for a reason. "Because I want you to?"

Guinevere felt her hands drop from his hair, her heartbeat picking up like it had back in the grotto. Slowly she began to realize how many times she had wanted to be close to him like they were then or how his eyes always seemed to darken slightly whenever they were together. She almost didn't want to believe he meant it in the way she thought she did for fear of being let down, but at the same time she wanted him to mean every word.

"Then next time we can sleep on the couch," she managed to get out. Her face barely inches away from his.

Whether it was the fact neither of them were fully awake or the fact they'd just realized how badly they wanted each other Gwen wasn't sure. But before she could even register her own body moving closer to his she felt his lips against hers. Her hands reaching around his shoulders to pull herself closer to him as she kissed back, his hands holding her face gently.

For someone so much larger than herself Arthur was incredibly tender, almost as if he couldn't believe what they were doing either. With a small smile Gwen kissed him a bit harder finding it incredibly easy to fit herself onto his lap.

They could've stayed in that position for hours and Guinevere certainly wanted to, but the sound of someone clearing their throat across the room quickly pulled them apart. Gwen's hands shooting down to make sure the robe hadn't moved apart as she scooted off Arthur's lap as he adjusted his position.

"Good morning…" Merlin said, too tired to bother with teasing Arthur. "I would've knocked, but there isn't a door."

Arthur's face seemed to have turned the same shade of red as the throw pillows on the couch. "So you thought just standing there would be better?"

"Relax you prat, I was going to the kitchen. The last thing I want to see in the morning is you snogging our friend." Merlin rolled his eyes, making his way through the living room to head into the kitchen. "By the way, good morning Gwen."

"Morning," she said, thankful she didn't blush as brightly as Arthur.

"If you two are done in there I was going to make breakfast." Merlin's voice came from the room next door along with the distinct sound of pans being banged against cupboard walls. "Though Arthur ate all the bacon, we still have eggs and I can make pancakes."

Trying not to bump into Arthur Guinevere got back up, checking the clock on her phone beside her dance bag. She still had to change into proper clothes and if she didn't hurry she'd be late on her first real day.

"Do you mind if I take mine to go Merlin? I slept through my alarm."

"Arthur's snoring can do that." The glare Arthur shot towards the kitchen erased any childlike drowsiness on his face. "I'll make something quick."

xXx

The rehearsal had been going on for little more than an hour before Mithian lost interest. She was a far better dancer than many of the girls Morgana had cast in big roles and she knew it. It took all her self-restraint to keep from marching up onto the stage just to put the girls back in their place.

She instead resigned herself to sitting back at the bar with Gwaine and several others of the male dancers. The rehearsal was mainly to allow Morgana a chance to see how her new leads moved in order to build a show around them. It took time to make the product worth its price tag. And though Mithian had been doing her best to sweet talk her way into a partnership with Gwen Morgana seemed to have her own plans for the girl.

It was almost sickening watching the dancers fawn over her trying to recreate the moves Mithian had taught her. It was even worse to admit that she was good at them.

"She's almost as good as you were."

Only for Mithian apparently.

Slowly she turned her head back to see Gwaine smiling down at her from the other side of the bar, a cup of coffee in his hands to try and hide the fact he'd been out all night again.

"It's only because I've been helping her. She still doesn't know how to move in the dance shoes though. She almost sprained her ankle last time she tried them." Mithian went back to watching the girls practice.

"That is how you get them isn't it? You break their feet and then manage to have learned all their steps," Gwaine said with a chuckle. "Has Morgana told her about the investor yet?"

"I'm sure she will in private," Mithian scoffed. "She doesn't want her little flower getting jumpy over her price. She needs her to trust her."

The smile on Guinevere's face as she danced made Mithian's heart sink. She could still remember her first time dancing for Morgana and being pulled aside to be told how much money she could bring the theater.

In retrospect she could tell how every word out of Morgana's mouth was just a gentle way of saying she was only worth what the investors wanted for her.

Guinevere was every inch as naïve and hopeful as she had been. By the time she realized what Morgana wanted from her it would be to late to say no.

"Morgana's going to ruin her," Mithian said, watching Gwen carefully.

"Mithian, if Morgana doesn't ruin her, you will." Gwaine turned back to watch the dancers. "The spotlight is only big enough for one person and you know it."

xXx

Arthur had been waiting outside the theater as soon as his morning business calls were handled. He had never been good at taking extended vacations but he'd be damned if he had to leave any sooner than absolutely necessary. Especially after that morning.

He could barely stay focused during the calls as his mind started to drift back to Gwen. Merlin even managed to slip giving Arthur an uncooked egg past him for a good ten minutes before he caught on. He couldn't get his mind off her no matter how hard he tried.

Thankfully he didn't have to wait long before the rehearsal let out, Guinevere walking over to his usual waiting spot with a smile.

"Do you ever do anything around here besides waiting for me?" She asked, walking him out of the resort for a change.

"Sometimes, I try not to make a schedule. Vacationing, remember?" He smiled, holding the door for her as they walked out into the city. "Where are we going anyway?"

With a practiced wave Guinevere hailed a cab, throwing her dance bag into the backseat. "I'm going home, I need some new clothes even if Merlin washed these. And the next rehearsal isn't for a few more days. Morgana's planning some big party for tomorrow instead."

Taking a seat in the cab Gwen motioned for Arthur to join her, catching on to the fact he wasn't too sure about how to ask if he was allowed in. He hadn't found much of a reason to ever get a public cab before but if that was what it took to stick by Gwen then so be it.

"What kind of party? She usually tells me about those things."

"Something to do with getting money for the next show." Guinevere quickly gave the driver directions to a part of town Arthur had never visited. "I'm supposed to go with Mithian since she's done those sorts of things before, it's apparently a big deal."

The view from outside the cab quickly became less inviting than the neighborhood around the resort. The buildings looking older and much more in need of attention than the ones he was used to seeing, and the people weren't any different.

"This man is coming to offer a ridiculous amount of money if he likes what he hears, so I'm going to be pretty busy tomorrow." Gwen seemed to be avoiding his gaze as they reached a worn down apartment building.

Paying the cabbie she quickly got out, holding the door open for Arthur before heading back up to the building, letting herself in with a kick to the gate in front of the door.

Without a word Arthur followed her in, doing his best to keep from staring at the worn out paint or the occasional open door with an equally worn out owner staring back at him. He didn't doubt that his own watch was worth more than what most of the building's residents made in a year.

"This is my place," Gwen said, stopping beside a brown door with the paint peeling around the edges. "You can come in if you want, there's not much to look at."

Giving the door a small shove with her hip Guinevere walked inside, leaving the door open for Arthur to follow. Making sure he closed the door behind him she hurried through the small living room into a room just out of sight, pushing her way past several cardboard boxes tapped up with different numbers written on their sides.

"You moving?" Arthur asked, careful not to bump into anything as he walked around the apartment.

"Hopefully." Her voice came from the second room. "Morgana gets the leads a place in the resort so she wanted me to move in as soon as the investor signs his contract. I packed most of the stuff yesterday with Mithian before the audition. I didn't think I'd actually be moving."

Arthur continued to look around the apartment, seeing a few photos of Gwen and another man a few years older than her who had the same bright smile she did. Though they didn't look too similar he assumed they were related somehow. He at least hoped they were.

"You have a brother?" he asked, moving towards the bathroom, spotting a bright orange container by the sink.

"Yeah, his name is Elyan. He's out doing something with the army, nothing serious though. He just likes moving around."

"He doesn't look very much like you," Arthur called, picking up the container as he spoke. The pills on the inside moving around as he read the label.

"He looks like our dad," Gwen said, her voice coming closer as she walked back to the living room. "I take after my mom… You looking for something Sherlock?"

Arthur quickly dropped the pills, looking back to Gwen with a smile, noting her change of clothes before replying. "Just checking the place out, that's all."

"Right," Gwen said, obviously not buying it.

Walking over to Arthur she pushed him out of the bathroom easily, picking up the container easily. With a simple pop she took off the cap, pouring two white pills into her hand as if to prove to him they were nothing sinister.

"They're pain pills Arthur, nothing to get all jumpy about." To prove her point she took the two in her hand without any water. "Mithian lent them to me after she started helping me. Dancing hurts your feet more than you realize."

"Sorry," Arthur said, moving back into the living room.

Taking a second look at the apartment Arthur began to notice all the small details that made the place distinctly Gwen's. Pictures from old magazines cut and framed on the wall beside pictures of her family, small flowers by the windowsill, little things here and there to distinguish it from just another shabby apartment.

"If the party goes well I'll have a place twice this size," Gwen said, putting away the pictures of Elyan. "The man is willing to invest fifty grand, at least!"

Arthur couldn't pretend to understand how much that seemed to someone who wasn't in business but judging by Guinevere's tone he knew it was more than she thought was necessary.

"Maybe I should go to help you, I could get him to go up a bit. I work with my father's investors all the time," he said, hoping he didn't sound as though he was bragging.

Gwen's face dropped, closing up the box with the pictures quietly. "No, it's not something you can help with," she said before smiling back to him. "Morgana said he only wants to talk to me, since I'll be the one carrying the show. But I'll bring you and Merlin some leftovers from the dinner, okay?"

Arthur nodded, not entirely sure what made Gwen's mood change for a moment. Walking over to her side he kissed her forehead, hoping that would help calm her down.

"That would be great. I'm sure it'll go fine," he said, smiling down to her. "He'll love you, I know businessmen and your worth far more than fifty grand."

Guinevere laughed, shoving his chest lightly to try and hide the pink tint across her cheeks. "You're an idiot… but thank you. I'll try not to have too much fun with all those stuffy business people." She smirked, going back to packing different things around the apartment.

Arthur chuckled, helping wherever he could. He was glad to see her relax after a while but the idea of her with a man willing to pay so much without even knowing what he was getting into kept gnawing at the back of his head. He knew businessmen and he certainly didn't trust them.

And he certainly didn't want to share Guinevere with one of them either.


	8. Chapter 8

The Investor

_Though nothing would keep us together, we could steal time. Just for one day._

* * *

Finding herself without a single thing suitable to wear to the dinner with all her things still being moved into the suite Morgana had picked it seemed the only thing to do was for Guinevere to simply not show up. Mithian could just as easily go in her place, and from what the other dancers told her it she sounded far more experienced in getting a man to invest. Mithian however, had different plans.

"You must be going crazy," she said when Guinevere came to ask her to take her place.

"You know how to do these things don't you? You'd be better at it than me, and I don't have a dress." Mithian's suite was a floor below the one intended for Guinevere, something Morgana made sure to point out when she made the announcement about her being moved in. "I promise I'll do my work the rest of the time I just need a cover for tonight."

Mithian groaned, pulling Gwen into the apartment without a second thought. The light pink walls a white paneling more than making up for the slightly less impressive view. Mithian had been around longer than any other girl in the company aside from Morgana and it showed in the expensive furnishings filling up the room to make it look like something out of an editorial on the rich and famous. A vintage dresser set up against the wall to hold dozens of memorabilia from past shows, the most recent being a diamond necklace long enough to be draped across the dresser doors.

"Did anyone ever bother explaining to you how these things work, Gwen? I can't just take your place. The investor wants you." Mithian left Guinevere alone in the living room, heading into her bedroom to dig through closet. "He requested you, that's why Morgana wants you to come. If you don't show up we all lose out on the money. And if we lose out on that money you could be sleeping with the prime minister himself and that wouldn't keep you safe."

The warning slipped past Guinevere as she admired the dresser full of expensive costume pieces. A diamond tiara set in the center on a ivory velvet pillow. It didn't look like a costume piece; it was far too ornate to be useful in any show. It was fit for a princess more than some showgirl.

"Are you listening to me Gwen?" Mithian asked, walking back into the living room, a red silk dress in her arms. "I'm serious about this, that man is promising us a new show and I want in. If you don't show up to that dinner both of our chances of getting on stage again are thrown away. I will not let that happen."

Guinevere nodded, looking back over to Mithian, having heard about how badly she wanted back in the show before. "I still don't have anything to wear, or know what to do. Why are you and Morgana putting so much faith in me to get this deal?"

"It's not a deal, Gwen." Mithian sighed, handing over the red dress motioning for her to go try it on. "The investor makes the deal with Morgana when he's decided we're worth his money. You're there because you're what he wants to spend money on. Did Morgana not explain this all to you?"

The dress didn't want to come on easily no doubt because Mithian wasn't exactly Gwen's size. Their heights were similar, and the waist fit would a problem. It was mainly getting the dress past her hips that seemed difficult.

"No," Gwen said, giving the fabric a final tug to move it passed the curviest part of her body. "She just told me how much he was offering."

Mithian was quiet, her gaze dropping as she pulled the tiara off the dresser. "No… I should've figured that'd be how she'd work with you." Mithian's voiced almost seemed sad. "Guinevere, there isn't much profit in musicals alone and Morgana needs a profit or she loses the company to Uther Pendragon. So when she realized that she came up with the idea to let customers pay a little extra to meet the dancers, and that grew into them paying a far bit extra to spend some time with the girls. When she realized how much money men were willing to shill out to spend an hour or two with she began pulling for different 'investors' from all over. These men were willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars just to make sure they got to see their favorite girl on stage and off. Each time there's a new show the lead gets herself an investor and the investor covers all the expenses needed. That means the man your going to meet tonight is the person you have to thank for your new suite and anything else given to you while you work here."

Guinevere felt her stomach drop. Morgana had told her how badly the investor wanted to meet her and how much she meant to the show, but she had no idea what that all even meant at the time. Now that the truth about her job was coming out Gwen began to regret letting her old place go on the market.

"Does that mean you had an investor?" she asked quietly, feeling Mithian walk over to her to help her finish dressing.

"I had several. That tiara in the dresser was the first gift I had gotten from one." Mithian closed the zipper of the dress easily, starting to do up Gwen's hair with an assortment of fine jewelry. "If you play your cards right with this one you'll have something like that in no time… Gwen, what we do is an art. It sounds dirty and gritty and Morgana could care less about what happens as long as she's paid but we're artists. On stage you make people believe in a fantasy world and offstage you make the men believe whatever is going to keep them happy."

The sudden tenderness from Mithian surprised Gwen. She had been helpful in the past but always for her own benefit. Something about the gentleness she had while fixing up her hair almost made Gwen believe she felt sorry for her.

For the first time, Guinevere saw just how similar their paths must look.

"And if I don't want to keep him happy?"

"Then we're both on the street with Morgana after us for the money she's losing." Mithian moved Guinevere over to her vanity, sitting her down to allow her to help with the makeup. "When I had my first investor I had to learn how to pretend to like his company quick. You want my advice?"

Gwen nodded, letting the woman do whatever she felt was necessary to fix her up.

"Don't think of who your with, don't even think about who you want to be with," Mithian said, holding Gwen's chin up to look her in the eyes. "When you look at that man, think about everything that making him happy will get you. I guarantee if you look at him like you'd look at the marquee with your name in lights you'll have him eating out of the palm of your hand."

xXx

The restaurant had been reserved exclusively for Morgana's dinner. Guests had been turned away and offered a second choice as to where they could go free of charge. Arthur had to practically beg Morgana to allow him to join her. On the condition that he come without Merlin and refrained from speaking during any serious matter she finally agreed to let him join.

Merlin hated the idea of being left behind but ultimately he knew it was for the best. If Arthur's suspicions about the men Guinevere was set to meet were even close to accurate than it was worth it if at least one of them could watch out for her.

Truth be told Arthur was ready to break into the dinner unannounced after finding the pills in Guinevere's place along with the mention of how much money was on the line. Something didn't feel right and he was far past trying to reason things out when his Guinevere's well being could be at stake.

His Guinevere. There was a phrase he wouldn't have thought would have come up so soon.

As he sat beside Morgana he soon realized just how quickly he'd fallen for Guinevere. He wanted to believe in love and all the fairytale nonsense Merlin prattled on about but he could never understand feeling whole when another person was beside him. It was all childish and he hadn't thought about the merit to Merlin's words in ages.

Yet the second he had the chance to kiss Guinevere the other morning he found himself unable to imagine living without knowing the feeling of her lips on his. In just those few seconds he had decided to give her his entire heart in the hopes that she would need him as badly as she needed her.

He had been so wrapped up in his thoughts about Gwen that he failed to realize when a tall well dress man joined them at the table, sitting directly across from him and Morgana. His dark hair slicked back to show off his evenly tanned skin. Out of everyone at the table he was the only man who's suit could rival Arthur's in price.

"So sorry we're late Morgana," the man said, flashing the two a bright smile. "Agravaine could send me proper directions so it took a while to wait for a cab."

Arthur turned his attention to the man as he spoke. Under any other circumstance he would've struck Arthur as someone trustworthy and harmless. Years of watching his father deal with investors however, taught him that those kinds of men were the ones to watch out for.

"I doubt he could find the place on his own anyway," Morgana chuckled. "Don't worry about it, our girl isn't here yet either. You have to give diva's their time you know."

The man laughed, welcoming Morgana's elder bookkeeper to the seat beside him. Arthur trusted the newer man even less than he trusted the one in front of him but by the way he kept his glance down towards his phone he doubted he had any real interest in Gwen.

The only real threat came from the fact the man across from him seemed just as eager to see her walk in as Arthur was.

"A diva needs a show Morgana." A silky voice came from behind the table as the old lead stepped forward in an ivory gown. "We've got a way to go before you can start calling her that."

All head's turned to the woman behind them, Morgana's eyes narrowing at the sight of her. Arthur could just barely remember her as the lead from the first show he had seen. She seemed sharper than when he had seen her before and if he didn't know better he would have said she seemed to be threatening Morgana by simply showing up.

He couldn't give the two women a second thought however, as Guinevere walked over to the table from behind the other woman before Morgana could get a word in. The red gown she wore clinging to her curves in the most delicious manner. Its sleeves falling off her shoulder to showcase her collarbone and just how high the bodice was pushing her chest up.

Had they been alone he doubted he would've been able to keep from trying to rip it off her the moment she walked into the room. It was only when he noticed the man across from him sharing the same thought that he pulled himself out of his fantasizing.

"I'm sorry for taking so long," Gwen said, holding back a giggle when both Arthur and the investor stood up to pull a chair out for her. "I had a little trouble finding something to wear."

"You look perfect." The investor said, giving Morgana a quick glance before she sent Gwen to sit beside him.

Arthur slowly sat himself back down, being joined by Mithian where he had expected Gwen to sit. Her own gaze lingering on the man beside Guinevere as the two started talking.

"Guinevere, this is Lancelot. Lancelot, this is Guinevere. She'll be our company's new star with the next production," Morgana said, keeping a close eye on both Mithian and Arthur. "She's quite the showgirl. I wouldn't be surprised if she sold the theater out faster than Mithian did."

"Morgana!" Gwen said, a slight pink tint covering her cheeks. "I'm still learning sir, she's just trying to make me sound better than I am."

"She still has a lot to learn until she's as good as I was," Mithian said, seeming unfazed by Morgana's comment. "She's still brand new, no one else has seen her on stage."

Lancelot's eyes never left Gwen as he moved an arm around her chair, smiling at her with an innocent that made Arthur sick to his stomach.

"I'm sure you'll do wonderfully, Guinevere," he said, his arm finding its way across her shoulders with a practiced fluidity that even Arthur lacked. "I hope you don't mind if I get the front table for your opening night. I'd hate to miss seeing you dance up close."

The man's innocent smile could barely hide meaning of his words and to Arthur's pleasure the look of surprise on Guinevere's face made it clear that she had caught on as well. There was no way she'd put up with his ogling at her like one of the other dancers Arthur had seen.

To his shock however, Guinevere's look of surprised quickly melted away into a small smile as she leaning into Lancelot with a playfulness Arthur had thought reserved for him.

"When we have a show I'll be sure to save you a seat, thought if you come by a rehearsal you wont even have to worry about that," she said with a smile as Arthur suddenly lost his appetite.

The two continued their teasing, occasionally being pushed along by Mithian when there was the threat of a silence. Arthur could barely stand to listen to it long enough for the first course to arrive and by the time it did he found himself faking a call from Merlin in order to excuse himself.

He left the table in such a hurry he didn't even have time to notice Guinevere's gaze leave the doting investor to follow him out of the room, her smile fading just as quickly as his appetite had.

xXx

The dinner couldn't have ended quick enough as far as Guinevere was concerned. No amount of encouraging smiles from Mithian or kind words from Lancelot kept the image Arthur hurrying out of the restaurant from her mind. If she had her way she would have followed him out the second he stood up, but both Morgana and Lancelot's gazes kept her from even moving out of her chair.

It wasn't until the older man at the table mentioned making a deal with Morgana that she and Lancelot left, giving Guinevere just enough time to leave. Without a second look to Mithian or Morgana leaving Gwen quickly followed the same path Arthur had. Praying she'd catch him waiting as she usually did.

The hallway outside the restaurant was empty and her Mithian's dress made it nearly impossible to imagine running around in search of where he had gone. If it hadn't been for the empty lobby across the hallway she would have missed the blonde man entirely as he waited for an elevator.

"Arthur!" She tried to ignore the relief in her voice as she hurried into the lobby after him. "Arthur please wait a moment."

"I should get back to Merlin, make sure he didn't burn the place down or something," Arthur said, barely able to look Guinevere in the eyes. "And you shouldn't keep your friends waiting either."

"You know he didn't and they aren't my friends." Guinevere stepped in front of the elevator doors as the started to open, blocking Arthur from leaving her alone again.

She couldn't explain the guilt she felt. She and Arthur had only kissed once and though it was certainly a good kiss it didn't mean they were bound to one another. At least for her. The carefully hidden look of hurt on Arthur's face seemed to argue otherwise.

"You and that Lancelot man seemed rather friendly," Arthur said, trying to find a way into the elevator around Gwen.

"I was being nice. If he's who Mithian thinks he is then he's offering up a lot of money to get me on stage. I… I need him to like me Arthur. It's just some innocent flirting," she said, unsure of how much she believed her own words. "I told you not to come anyway so why did you?"

Arthur paused, his deep blue eyes fixed down onto her with steely determination to not show any more emotion than necessary. He knew as well as Guinevere did that neither of them had any right telling the other what not to do after just one kiss. At the same time however, he could not shake the feeling of being led on.

"I wanted to make sure you were okay. Morgana's a cruel person when it comes to getting what she wants and any man putting down that much money out of the blue obviously wants something for it and you're walking around in that dress that I'm surprised you could even manage to sit in and—"

"Arthur!" Gwen cut him off before his jealous rambling could go any farther. "I know what I'm getting myself into and I'm completely capable of taking care of myself!"

Guinevere knew Arthur wasn't used to being called out and she wasn't fond of causing trouble but the fact he was acting so possessive without a clear reason was infuriating.

"I'm not some little girl who's going to be parading around after a pretty boy just because he makes her feel special alright? I've got my own job and if I have to entertain a man with a lot of money then I'm going to do that! It was just some smiles and a little flirting, it was harmless!" she said unable to hold herself back, "I don't even have to be explaining this to you, I don't owe you an explanation."

The taller man took a step back, staring down at the smaller woman in awe. It was then that she realized just how badly the kiss had affected Arthur. From the look on his face she could tell he had never considered she didn't see them as a couple. He didn't seem offended or upset.

He simply looked hurt.

"Oh," was all he could get out before he had to catch the elevator doors from closing. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come… I thought... I don't know what I thought."

Stepping aside Guinevere allowed him into the elevator, the hurt look on his face making her stomach sink down into the pit of her gut. She knew exactly what he thought and that he probably thought she would be far more grateful for his surprise than she was. Had he been any less sincere she would have had half a mind to leave him in the elevator alone.

But damn it all if she wasn't certain that his hurt face would keep her from sleeping for weeks.

"Wait," she said. Arthur just barely managing to stop the door in time to let her follow him inside. "I shouldn't have yelled it's just… Well this is what I want to do, I want to be on stage and I want to have the cute apartment filled with things from shows I've been in and Lancelot may be my one ticket there. I don't know what this is between the two of us but if it's going to work you're going to have to accept that I'll need to show him a good time until I get there. Okay?"

There was more than enough room in the elevator for a good amount of space to be put between the two but she still found herself inches away from Arthur. She watched as he contemplated the offer, the cuff of his jacket brushing against her nose as he fixed a flyaway curl on the top of her head. After what had been a considerably long silence Gwen found herself worrying that he say no, and losing him scared her a fair deal more than she wanted it to.

"Okay," he finally said. "I just don't want to lose you, Guinevere."

He didn't need to elaborate on why or on what they were. He wouldn't have been given the chance either way. By the time he had said her name Guinevere's lips were already on his, kissing him lightly at first before he kissed back even harder.

As far as she was concerned at the moment the only reason he would lose her was when they had to separate and leave the elevator. And they had a good twenty floors before that came up.

**A.N.: I'd just like to take a moment to thank everyone for reading and reviewing and being generally wonderful and supportive. If you haven't noticed though the updates tend to be getting larger as I go and I'm not so sure why but if you could just tell me whether or not you like the longer chapters that would be a great help!**

**Hope you enjoyed.**


	9. Chapter 9

Diamond Dogs

_A kiss on the hand may be quite continental, but diamonds are a girl's best friend._

* * *

At the sound of the elevator reaching the penthouse level Guinevere and Arthur were reluctantly forced to part. The collar of Arthur's shirt hanging around his neck in a creased mess from Gwen's arms around his neck while her borrowed dress was now in desperate need of pressing from Arthur's hands roaming and grabbing at her body. The carefully applied lipstick Guinevere had been wearing was now smeared across Arthur's lips, highlighting the smug smile on his face as he helped Guinevere out of the elevator.

The pair could hardly keep themselves from laughing at the turn of events as Arthur attempted to steal another kiss each time Gwen slowed to adjust her heels before giving in and removing them completely. Guinevere had known kissing Arthur was enjoyable, but she hadn't expected him to be persistent to keep the kisses going as he was. Had she known she would have forgone wearing any lipstick at all.

"If you don't hurry up I'll be carrying you inside," Arthur said, easily placing a kiss on Gwen's forehead.

"It's this dress!" Gwen laughed as she pushed the taller man away, attempting to keep up to him as best she could. "Mithian doesn't go around running after men."

"And what a shame for men everywhere," Arthur smirked, receiving a hard swat on his arm by Guinevere before moving over to pick her up by her waist easily.

Gwen found herself giggling as Arthur carried her into the penthouse, trying her best to slip out from his grasp without falling backwards. The silk of the dress slipped around only to cause Arthur to hold her tighter before placing her back on the ground. Her attempts to keep from tripping failing as the bunched up silk wrapped around her knees causing her to fall right back into Arthur's arms.

Taking advantage of the moment Arthur stole another kiss, holding Guinevere's hips as she returned the kiss with just as much fervor. Gwen could feel his hands pulling her closer against him as she moved her own up to run her fingers through his now messy blonde hair. Had it not been for a need of air she doubted they would have parted, as Arthur didn't bother loosing his hold on her hips.

"I-is Merlin awake?" Gwen asked as she scrambled for a breath.

"I doubt he's here." Arthur kissed across her jaw-line, managing to catch his breath between kisses. "If I don't feed him he goes to find someone who will. He's like a pet."

"Arthur…"

"Fine, fine I'll check." Reluctantly Arthur pulled away from his kisses, moving his head back away from Guinevere before belting loud enough to be heard by anyone walking through the hallway out side the penthouse. "Merlin!"

Without a proper warning Gwen winced from the power of his voice. She doubted covering her ears would have done much to soften the blow. Had Merlin been in the flat she doubted he could have ignored the call even if he was deep in sleep.

When no answer came Arthur's smug smile grew. His blue eyes dancing in the dim lighting cast throughout the living room from the large window as he looked back to Gwen.

"Told you, he'll be back tomorrow," he said, his hands moving up to Gwen's waist. "Don't you worry about him now."

Finding herself enchanted by his gaze Guinevere reached up to hold onto the lapels of his jacket, her eyes lowering to admire the traces of her lipstick across his lips and cheek.

"And who should I be worried for then?"

"Mainly that dress, you're practically spilling out of it." Arthur's hands tracing across her back until he grasped onto the dress's zipper. "We'll have to fix that before it gets damaged."

"Hmm, so thoughtful." Guinevere couldn't help but smile, turning around to allow Arthur to undo her dress with ease.

The quick bite of cold air on her back soon replaced by the heat of Arthur's kisses trailing down the back of her neck to the crook of her spine. A sharp gasp escaping her lips as she felt him kiss the back of her neck harder as the dress slipped off, needing a tug to pass her hips before pooling up at her feet.

Guinevere turned to face Arthur, allowing him to lift her out of the pool of silk as she wrapped her legs around his waist. His jacket and tie quickly joining the dress on the floor as he carried her toward the master bedroom. Gwen's fingers knotting themselves in his hair as they shared another kiss even more heated than the last.

Arthur held her with ease as he kicked the door closed behind them in case Merlin decided to return early. As quickly as the door had closed he moved her to the edge of his bed, freeing his arms to toss his shirt onto the floor as Guinevere worked his pants off just as quickly. The clothes soon scattered around the bed as Gwen pulled him up beside her.

On her knees she almost matched his height though she was still far from matching his size. Her eyes transfixed on the way his toned muscles moved as he began to kiss her neck. His mutterings about Guinevere's beauty barely reaching her ears before being drowned out by a quiet moan as he nipped a sweet spot on her neck.

Encouraged by the sound Arthur began to kiss the spot harder, lowering Gwen's back against his bed with ease. His hands roaming across her body in an attempt to memorize her every curve, grabbing anywhere he can before pushing her legs apart without complaint. His lips trailing down from her neck across her collar bone, taking a moment to kiss any tender spot hard.

Before Guinevere could pull his lips back to his neck she felt his hand trailing down from her thigh to brush across her now heated center. Her hands gripping his broad shoulders tight as he began to trace circles across the most sensitive spot on her body.

"Tease…" she said with a smirk, her fingers digging into his shoulder blades as he began to put more pressure on the one spot.

The longer Arthur teased her the louder her moans became, her body aching for more than just his touch. Unable to stand being without him any longer she moved one hand from her shoulders to grab at his manhood gently to bring him towards her entrance. Her gentle coaxing more than enough to get her message across as Arthur moved his hand to her wrist, placing her arm above her head as he pushed inside her.

A sharp gasp escaping her lips as she felt just how large he was quickly silenced by Arthur's lips on hers. Kissing him back heavily Guinevere only needed a moment to get used to him before moving her leg around his hips to encourage him to move.

Happily obliging Arthur began to pick up his pace slowly at first before Guinevere began to move her own hips to increase their speed. The kiss breaking as he moaned over the feeling of her tight warmth around him. His moan quickly joined by Gwen's as she gripped his shoulders tighter, her nails digging into his skin as she felt a heat starting to build up from the pit of her stomach.

"A-arthur…" she moaned, her back arching to press herself against him as the feeling grew until it covered her completely.

Gripping onto her hips Arthur only continued to increase the pace, the feeling of Gwen tightening around him only encouraging him. With a kiss to her neck he felt her hands gripping even tighter against his back as she was pushed over the edge.

"O-oh…oh! Arthur...!" The feeling hitting her body like a wave as nearly screamed his name in release to which Arthur matched with just as much intensity.

The two clung to each other as their bodies started to relax. Neither seemed to want to move away from the other even when Gwen sunk back down against the bed. Their shallow breathing mixed with light laughter in their post-orgasmic state.

Reluctantly Arthur moved from above Guinevere to lie besides her, kissing her cheek sloppily only to elicit more breathless laughter.

"I should make you jealous more often…" she giggled, turning over to face Arthur with a smile.

"As long as I'm whose name your screaming," Arthur said with a smirk.

Weakly giving his chest a shove Gwen couldn't help but smile as she moved closer to curl against his side, finding that she already missed the feeling of his arms around her. The two lay side by side in a blissful quiet for a moment as Gwen rested her head on Arthur's chest. The rise and fall of his breath lulling her into a calm she couldn't remember having felt beside someone else before.

"In that case," she yawned, wrapping her arm across his chest comfortably. "You have nothing to worry about."

And in that moment no amount of money could convince Guinevere she was wrong.

xXx

The hours after the dinner were not only a success for Arthur and Guinevere but for Morgana as well. Lancelot seemed so enchanted with her lead that after only mentioning how much would be needed to put Gwen on stage he was ready to sign any contract passed to him.

Morgana had dealt with her fair share of men vying for Mithian's attention but never once did she see someone so ready to please a woman he had to pay to spend time with. She never asked him why he was so interested in Gwen simply because it didn't affect the contract, but if he was persistent enough to stick around and fund her shows then she could only see his enthusiasm as a good thing. As far as she could tell the man seemed to think he was already in a relationship with Guinevere after their dinner.

With luck she would have the two together enough to not even have to worry about Guinevere changing her mind.

She would have shared the good news with her new favorite at the book meeting the next day had she bothered to show up on time. The meeting wasn't crucial for Gwen as it only dealt with the story they wanted to use for their next show as her part would be determined mainly by Morgana but her absence was noted.

Too much money was on the line for Guinevere to start acting as though she made the rules. Even Mithian who had seemed glued to the girl's side for the sole purpose of vexing Morgana had no idea as to what would be keeping their lead from showing up.

"She may have just slept in late," Mithian said to Gwen's defense. "She'll show up."

The rehearsal had been pushed past lunch to try and accommodate for whatever was holding her up but Morgana had dealt with enough inconveniences with Mithian to be open to diva in her company. Just as her temper was close to boiling over the theater doors flung open as the small woman was ushered in with the help of the bartender.

"I'm so sorry! I lost my phone and my alarm didn't go off and—"

"Quiet!" Morgana's voice rang through the empty theater with an impressive clarity that caused the dancers around her to shrink back. "I understand you're new to all this, but we do not tolerate absences once rehearsal begins. Guinevere, you're very important here. Do not think that means I'm against having you sleep from the cat walk if that's what it takes to have you here on time."

The smaller woman nodded, her hands pulling at the collar of her jacket to keep it as close to her neck as possible. Morgana vaguely noticed the small discoloring of the skin she was attempting to cover before Mithian hurried to the side of her new ward. The old star fussing over the girl's hair and clothes in such a manner that Morgana quickly lost interest. If the two were smart they would know better than to let whatever kept her from happening again.

"If we're done with this little episode, I'd like to go over the show so we can begin the real work." Morgana walked over to stand center stage, having the entire company's attention fixed on her.

With a little assistance from the members of the company who had bothered to attend the earlier meeting Morgana began to gloss over their plans for the new story. To highlight Guinevere in the best light they chose to work with a setting in the burlesque club from the thirties. Guinevere would be playing the role of the club's lead singer with Vivian and Mithian backing her, though Mithian's casting was only made to ensure Gwen had someone to show her the ropes.

The story would follow the singer as she falls for the club's owner, who one of the kinder men in the company named Percy had offered to play, as he ran out of money to support the joint. As a reprieve the owner would turn towards a mobster, who the company voted would best be played by Gwaine, that frequented the club in order to keep his business afloat. When the mobster spots the singer he would bargain to take her away from the club in exchange for his partnership.

"At the moment we're still debating on the ending. Either the signer will leave with the mobster for a better life, or she'll stay with the club," Morgana watched as the company began to debate for which version they preferred. "Our investor and Agravaine will be choosing the ending. You all will have to manage with which ever one they choose."

A resounding groan came from the older members, knowing very well how fickle an investor's attention could be. The groan silenced by a quick glare from Morgana before she turned the rehearsal over to the company's choreographer.

Guinevere appeared to be paying attention after a quick nudge from Mithian. The two had been spending quite a lengthy amount of time together and though Morgana wanted nothing more than to keep Gwen under her control having someone around to teach her how the business worked was too useful to pass up.

Leaving the company in the hands of the choreographer Morgana left the theater in order to make a quick phone call. She had hoped to push the call off longer but considering the threat of future missed rehearsals and whatever Mithian would try to pull it became necessary to secure her investment in Gwen as soon as possible.

"_How can I help you?_" An older voice asked.

"Gaius, how are you?" Morgana smiled, knowing how to charm the doctor better than anyone. "I know we haven't spoken for a while, but the girls have been keeping me busy."

"_They always do,_" the old man chuckled.

"It keeps it interesting. Anyway we have a new girl with us, very talented even Mithian knows so, but she isn't used to performing so I was wondering if you could send over some of those pills we had given Mithian for her stage fright," Morgana said sweetly.

"_You know I'd rather not. It can be very harmful to the girls if they take too many. Poor Mithian was almost dependant on them you had me sending so many."_

"It's for the good of the show Gaius, we'll be much more careful this time. No more than two per show I swear." Morgana smiled as she was almost convinced by her own lie. "She's a healthy girl otherwise. It's harmless I promise."

The other end of the phone stayed quiet for a moment longer as the doctor considered the consequences. The pills he would prescribe were not meant to be taken unless absolutely necessary, as they were known to hold addictive properties. He had been in charge of the Pendragon family's affairs for years now though, and refusing a seemingly harmless request from the ever-charming Morgana was more difficult than refusing Uther himself.

_"Very well. I'll have a bottle sent over to you by the end of the week. Just make sure she doesn't take any additional medication. And it's only to be used for a show!"_

Gaius's warnings had no affect on Morgana's decision. If a confidence boosting drug had a habit of making her girls far more cooperative in some matters then the check dangling from Lancelot's hands was more than enough to convince her of it's necessity. When Mithian felt uneasy about her first investor Morgana supplied her with a way to go on, and just to insure Guinevere continued down the path they started at the dinner she'd have as much ready as needed.

"Of course, my dear friend. Only to help the show."

xXx

Merlin returned to the penthouse the next day, having spent the night in a bar with a female bartender all too pleased to let him stay on her couch after drinking too much. From what he could remember he didn't find the woman too attractive but he was not one to pass up another's hospitality. Especially when he was too lazy to cook himself food.

As he expected on his return the flat was left in shambles, Arthur's clothes thrown about the living room floor as he could never be bothered to put them where they belonged. The kitchen looked as though it had been hit by a hurricane with pots, pans, and burnt pancake batter covering every available surface. The only thing that Merlin wasn't expecting had been the deep red chunk of silk lying near Arthur's jacket.

He assumed it would happen sometime, but he hadn't guessed he would be lucky enough to avoid trying to sleep through it all together.

"You still here Prince Charming?" Merlin teased, picking the dress up from the ground, laying it across the couch to keep from wrinkling the fabric.

A groan from Arthur's bedroom answered his question. "I think the milk went bad."

"That isn't the milk you moron, it was the fact you tried to eat your own cooking in the first place." Collecting the clothes on the floor Merlin walked into Arthur's room, throwing the clothes into the hamper to demonstrate their proper place. "So you and Guinevere then?"

Arthur nodded, lying back on his bed to try and keep from loosing his late breakfast. Merlin could only chuckle. Usually Arthur would take this opportunity to brag to Merlin about the woman he had been with or anything to bring up how Merlin's luck with women was far worse than his own. The fact he spoiled any chance to seem superior to Merlin made spending a night on a strangers couch all the more worth it.

"She had to go to her place before seeing Morgana. She couldn't stay for breakfast."

"Brunch. You never wake up in time for breakfast. And that's all the better for her. I doubt throwing up on stage is a good thing," Merlin said, going through the room in an attempt to tidy it up. "So… dare I ask how it went?"

Even in his pathetic state Arthur still managed to smile at the memory. Merlin could see the sickly color leave his cheeks for a moment as his eyes stared up to the ceiling as if it were covered in gold.

"No, don't explain. I know that look well enough," Merlin said with a smile. "You've fallen for her hard haven't you?"

"I don't understand why I would, we've barely known each other that long." Arthur ran his hands through his hair, a wide smile plastered onto his face. "She just has this look in her eyes some of the time, and when she laughs it's just… and her body I can't begin to—"

"Save it!" Merlin laughed, picking up a red bag he could only assume belonged to Gwen. "You're going to make me sick if you keep talking like that."

Despite his stomach disagreeing with him Arthur still managed enough energy to throw a pillow at Merlin's head. The hit causing him to lose his grip on the bag just enough for it to slip from his hands to fall on the ground with a quiet thud. A quiet jingle coming from within the bag as it fell beside the pillow.

Unable to with hold his curiosity Merlin picked it back up, opening it to try and find what made the noise. With a quick scan he noticed a phone in need of a good charge, some cash, and a bright orange bottle with a white cap. Taking the bottle out Merlin gave it one quick shake to determine it was the source of the jingle along with the fact it seemed to be missing more pills than the label indicated.

"What's that?" Arthur asked, coming down from his momentary bliss long enough to recognize what Merlin was doing.

"Some sort of prescription pain pill. It's made out to that Mithian girl." Merlin shrugged, placing it back into the bag. "Woman things I'm sure. You can give this all back to Gwen later."

Arthur nodded, his uneasiness now shifting away from his stomach to regard the pills he had seen earlier that week. He couldn't help but feel as though something was going on he wasn't aware of and Merlin knew he wouldn't be satisfied enough with allotting it to 'woman things'.

"She's a dancer right? Those shoes hurt your feet. I mean that's what I've heard anyway. Try not to let it bother you too much. She still likes you so some Advil never hurt anything."

Merlin's reassurances fell on deaf ears as Arthur pulled himself out of bed to get dressed.

"I know, she's smarter than to take something bad for her. I'm just not sure I like the idea of people working for Morgana slipping her things under the table."

"She works for Morgana, Arthur."

"I know, Merlin." His mind was already made up and Merlin knew it. If he learned anything from his time around Arthur it was that the one trait all Pendragon's shared besides their money was their stubbornness.

"I just want to keep an eye on those people. I met a few last night at dinner and I don't like the looks of them."

"Well what are you going to do, spy on them?"

"Of course not you idiot. But I don't think having a word with that Mithian girl would hurt anything," he said. "You keep an eye out for Guinevere while I'm gone alright?"

Merlin groaned, knowing very well this meant he would be stuck cleaning up the mess in the kitchen. "Fine. Run off and play white knight without me. I'll keep your girlfriend company."


	10. Chapter 10

Name Your Price

_First there is desire, then passion, and then suspicion…_

* * *

With the book being written and the set list starting to fall into place the only hard work left to do fell on Guinevere and the other dancers. Morgana had promised them grand sets and even grander costumes with Lancelot's help, a fact that excited everyone in the company aside from Gwen. The show had yet to be named but as far as the company was told it promised to be the most successful show they had put on.

If Guinevere could keep her end of the deal up, anyway.

The choreographer worked her feet to the bone as the company watched. Mithian managing to weave her way into the lessons to push and pull Gwen's body to show her how to properly seduce the audience, something that at first seemed strange until the male dancers began to offer their opinions on Mithian's methods. Even the sweet-mannered Percival offered a comment or too when he thought there was something that could be changed.

"You have to convince the crowd you have feelings for the club owner Gwen," Mithian said, walking her through the choreographer's steps. "You make Percy here fall for you and they will too, and if they like you that's better for all of us."

At this the tall man's cheeks turned a light pink, causing the men around him to chuckle. "What Mithian means is you just have to make it look like you like me, you don't have to pretend to be in love with me."

Guinevere nodded, taking a small break when the choreographer started to work with the men. _Well, that's one less person I need to lie to_, she thought, digging around in her dance bag for a bottle of water.

She had already heard from Mithian and Morgana how important convincing Lancelot she cared for him was to so many people besides the three of them, and she'd skipped out on staying with Arthur for breakfast to keep from explaining to him why she had to take so many pills before rehearsal. Even if it was just an act the last thing she needed was to have another web of lies to string together in order to protect herself and her performance. As far as she was concerned the only lie she wanted to tell was that she understood her steps for the opening number.

"I want the backdrop to be big enough to have the whole company standing around it together. No I don't care how much it costs you know we've got the deal signed. No, no Guinevere wont be using it works with her pieces so he'll still be paying for it." Gwen could just barely make out Morgana fussing about on stage, her phone pressed close to her ear. "Just get it done, the sooner the sets are finished the sooner we move to costume. We're on a tight schedule here, make it happen."

Everything and everyone seemed to be running in a frenzy around her as she ordered people to and fro. Guinevere had never seen someone so in control of their surroundings and while the sight was impressive she wanted nothing more than to use the chaos to go back to Arthur's bed and hide from everything that was expected of her. Morgana, however, had different plans the second she spotted Gwen.

"There you are," she said as she hung up her call. "Come here, I've been meaning to talk to you."

"I'm not sure if I'm free right now Morgana, we still have the rest of the number to learn," Gwen said in an attempt to avoid the conversation.

"Nonsense, they've still got ten other people to teach it to, I can borrow you for a moment." Morgana's polite smile did nothing to hide the fact she wouldn't be allowing Guinevere to make excuses. "Come see me in my office."

Morgana walked off stage through the frenzy of dancers and builders with such a sense of purpose she seemed to part the sea of people and curtains with an effortless ease. Should her air of power had been directed to any other profession there was no doubt in Guinevere's mind that she would be terrifyingly successful. But for better or for worse, Morgana's efforts were focused on the theater and Guinevere specifically.

This made the idea of trying to avoid Morgana a second time completely ridiculous.

With a small sigh Guinevere pulled herself up from her seat, walking backstage after the taller woman as quickly as she could manage. She had never been inside the office personally but the older members of the company were able to point her in the right direction easily.

The office lay in a hallway between the girls' dressing room and the stage door. Secluded from the rest of the theater Guinevere could only assume what kinds of shady deals she needed complete privacy for. It wasn't until she came to sit down across from the large hard wood desk that she even considered the fact Lancelot's investment in her was most likely made in the room as well.

"Is something wrong?" Gwen asked, watching Morgana dig through one of the desk drawers.

"Not at all, I just have a little business to talk to you about." The woman carefully pulled out a small notebook and a bottle of pills from the top drawer. "The dancers have been saying you get a bit nervous on stage, yes?"

"I don't think so… I mean I haven't been there as long as them so I guess it takes some getting used to," Gwen said, unsure of where she was going with her question. "Mithian said everyone gets a little nervous."

"Mithian says a lot of things dear, and you can't always listen to her." Morgana smiled, handing Gwen the bottle. "Sometimes you need a second opinion, and in this case it's mine."

The bottle felt heavier in her hand than the pain pills Mithian had given her. The label across the side filled with warnings and ingredients she had never heard of before and the doctor's notes were nearly impossible to read. She had taken serious medication once or twice before and remembered the feeling of the few pills placed in a large bottle. A quick shake proved that unlike her past prescriptions, this bottle had been filled to the top.

"How is this a second opinion?" She asked, an uneasy feeling coming over her the longer she held the bottle.

"For your stage fright. They help calm the nerves and remove inhibitions. Mithian took them for a while when she started too. Just take two if you start feeling nervous and everything will be fine." Morgana smiled, placing her hands over Gwen's, skillfully closing her hands around the bottle to ensure she kept it. "You can stop taking them once we're sure you can handle everything. Alright?"

Before Guinevere could consider the issues with taking a medication like that she found herself already putting it in her dance bag, Morgana's gaze only leaving her when the pills were tucked safely in their new home. Had she refused the bottle there was no doubt in her mind Morgana would have found a way to force her to take it.

"Alright. I'll try not to use it up too fast," Gwen attempted to chuckle.

With a small smile she was excused, pulling her bag back over her shoulder head out of the room as quickly as possible. She wanted to rid herself of the uneasy feeling that had settled in at the sight of the bottle and she doubted the bleak office was doing anything to help.

It wasn't until she had almost made her escape that the sound of Morgana clearing her throat forced her to look back.

"I almost forgot. You wont be going to rehearsal Friday night." Morgana's smile seemed almost genuine, as if she was excited for Gwen. "Lancelot has arranged a dinner for the two of you then. He's very excited apparently, so you get some rest before then."

Guinevere felt her heart sink. She had no desire to pretend to be interested in another man while Arthur was most likely still in the bed she had left so unceremoniously. Yet she could not use another man as an excuse to avoid her investor, not while she knew how much was at stake.

"That sounds fun," she lied much to Morgana's enjoyment. "I'll be ready."

At that she was finally dismissed, being left to return to the theater on her own. As thoughts about making an excuse to avoid Arthur that day began to mingle with all the lies she'd have to prepare to deal with Lancelot's affections Guinevere barely noticed the sound of her dance bag opening up.

As her mind began to turn towards how to tell Arthur she wouldn't be available all Friday she became unaware of the bottle of pills opening. And as she pictured having to tell him she would be busy Saturday as well she could barely taste the bitterness of the pills as she walked back onto stage.

xXx

To say finding someone willing to speak to Arthur was difficult would be a sickening understatement. Since he had left the comforts of his bed that morning there was not a single person willing to even point him in the direction of Morgana's office, and for the first time in his life dropping the Pendragon name only seemed to steer him farther from where he wanted to go.

It wasn't until the dancers had been released from their rehearsal that he was even allowed to enter the theater.

The dancers passed around him completely unaffected by his presence. To them he had no more importance than one of the many set pieces placed throughout the theater. He doubted they even knew who he was.

Looking around the exiting dancers Arthur almost thought he saw Guinevere leaving with a few of the other people in the company but before he could call her name the vaguely familiar face of the old lead cut off his view.

"Are you lost?" she asked, distracting him long enough to allow Guinevere to leave without seeing him.

Pulling himself back to earth Arthur looked down to the woman; though she was taller than his Gwen she still wasn't as tall as him. With his first view of her in proper lighting he could note several differences between her and Gwen aside from their height. This woman seemed harder, her features and her demeanor sharpened in a manner he had only seen before in Morgana. Her body looked thinner and frailer than Guinevere's but she held herself with a strength that he was nearly certain was the only thing keeping her standing.

At one point in time, he might have found her beautiful. But in the middle of the day he could tell something else had gotten to her first.

"No, I'm just looking for Morgana," he finally replied, "I need to speak with her."

"She can't help you," she said curtly. "She doesn't take clients when there isn't a show running, and besides she doesn't cater to family matters."

Mithian patted his arm in a fake show of sympathy before starting to walk away. The remaining dancers avoided her with a fearful show of respect as she past them to head backstage.

He may not be able to question Morgana directly, but he knew business well enough to recognize the second in command.

Quickly he followed Mithian backstage, weaving his way past have constructed set pieces and costume racks meant for dozens of different people and scenes. While Mithian moved through the clutter with a practiced grace Arthur's stumbling nearly knocked over two costume racks and a small stagehand as they moved passed the dressing rooms.

"You're persistent aren't you?" Mithian said, turning back to look at Arthur.

"I need to talk to you, since Morgana isn't available. It'll only take a minute I promise."

At this the woman's sharp features softened, her face breaking out into a wide smile as she laughed. "That's nothing to be proud of, Mr. Pendragon. That's actually really sad." Her laughter continued as she led him to a back room free from any of the pre-show clutter.

Pink satin and ivory pillows covered the room along with empty silver trays and remnants of some long forgotten party. Mithian lounged across a large pink loveseat, toying with a piece of her hair as Arthur entered the room. She somehow blended seamlessly into the gaudy set up in a way that almost caused him to forget how ridiculous the place looked during the day, but only almost.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, not particularly caring to touch anything in the room.

"'_It'll only take a minute'_, a great Pendragon can only last a minute? No wonder you were looking for Morgana," she teased, her smile quickly fading when Arthur failed to understand her joke. "…What did you want to talk to her about?"

"A friend of mine, I just want to know a few things about how everything's run, business stuff, not too much. What did you think I wanted to know?"

Quickly Mithian rose from the chair, closing he door behind Arthur, pushing him over to sit where she had been. Her well-groomed brows furrowing as she looked him over. Arthur recognized the look crossing her face to be the same his father had before telling him bad news, she had something to admit and whatever it was he doubted he'd like it.

"Who is your friend?" she countered, trying to buy herself more time.

Arthur considered lying for a moment, but he figured there was nothing to be gained in hiding who he was to Guinevere. Especially if that would help him get his answers.

"Guinevere, we're rather close." Mithian's face seemed to harden at the mention of Gwen's name. "She and I were a bit curious about how everything works from here, since Morgana doesn't tell my father or I more than how much money she brings in."

"…You shouldn't be meddling in these things, Arthur. Gwen has enough to deal with and I can promise you she knows how things work around here." Mithian's stern gaze never left his face.

"Just explain to me about this whole investor deal, that man from dinner earlier, that's her investor right? What do they do? Why does she have to pretend to be sweet on him?" Once the questions started coming out he could barely get them to stop. "Why are you giving her pills, and why on earth is it so important that she listen to what you and Morgana say? She's just a dancer, she doesn't need you all fussing over her!"

Mithian went quiet, a slow recognition passing over her face as she realized why Arthur was so wound up from something he had no business being involved with. Carefully she managed to keep her tone calm, wanting to make sure Arthur listened to her completely.

"The pills are for her feet, if a dancer ruins their feet then they ruin the show. They wont hurt her if she takes them every now and again. It's not important to her to listen to Morgana, but I've been where she is and if she wants to make it she needs to listen to me, plus if things go well for her I can work with her to get back where I belong." Her hand covered his lightly, as if to insure he stayed down while she continued.

"The investor is something every lead wants to get, they pay for the show and anything to do with the girl their investing in. It's like a partnership. Her investor is called Lancelot and he's got big money down in South America or something, I don't really know. But I do know what he's investing more money in Gwen than any investor has in any dancer before, so we need to make sure he likes her enough to want to keep giving us his money." Mithian paused for a moment, considering the best way to word her next point. "Saying she's just a dancer is wrong, she's much more important than that.

"She's like an escort now, most of the girls are. It's good money and it keeps the theater running even if the shows aren't great. Morgana has her rules and the girls aren't made to do anything they don't want to do. An escort isn't just some hooker that men can call though; they show men a good time. It's like paying to be in a relationship. That's why Gwen has to pretend to like being around Lancelot, because as far as he's concerned they're together when he's around."

For what seemed like ages neither of them spoke. Arthur could feel his heart drop to his stomach as he heard the final bit of news. He couldn't believe his ears at first, something as insane as his Guinevere selling herself just couldn't be true. She was his, and he was hers, no price tag needed. Yet all it took for someone else to call her there's was a few dollars and some fancy costumes. It all made him sick.

"What if I pay over him to make him leave?" Arthur asked, having a hard time getting the words out. "Then she wouldn't have to pretend to be anything to him."

Mithian's gazed softened as she almost seemed to pity Arthur. "Morgana wont take your money. The last thing she'd want is to give any of her success to you or your father… You can't make Lancelot leave, legally he nearly owns the show."

"There has to be something…"

The silence covered the room again as Mithian considered his options. She wasn't about to sabotage her show and he knew that, but for one reason or another she took pity on him, so he could only hope she'd have pity for Gwen as well.

"You could take Gwen away from here," she said, a devious twinkle returning to her eyes. "Give her to opening night and I'll keep her safe, then you get her on a plane and take her far from here and Lancelot. I'll help if you make sure she's long gone before the show starts."

Had Arthur cared to think about the situation logically he would have turned Mithian down. There was no doubt in his mind his removing Gwen would benefit her position in the show, and he had no real reason to trust she would take care of her. He didn't even have a reason to believe Guinevere would want to leave with him. But he was too consumed with a need for action to even think about any negative outcome.

Guinevere may have fallen into Morgana's game, but he would be the one to get her out if it was the last thing he did.

"You keep Morgana and that Lancelot away from her and you'll never see either of us again."

xXx

For hours after Arthur the shared penthouse things had become almost unbearably quiet. The cleaning lady had given up on helping with Arthur's room, and the kitchen had taken hours to even begin to look like it had before Arthur got to it. Merlin had dealt with being left around the house waiting for Arthur before, but the longer he was left alone the flat the more anxious he became. He even began to think he could hear the digital clock changing time.

Unable to bear inaction any longer Merlin left the penthouse in search of Arthur or Guinevere. He had agreed to take care of Gwen while Arthur was busy, so it only made sense that he could at least try to find her. She was more enjoyable to be around than Arthur was anyway.

It didn't take long for Merlin to start wandering the halls of the resort in search of anywhere Gwen may have gone. The other dancers frequented lounges or bars, usually moving in groups of three or more, but none of the groups he passed seemed to hold Guinevere. The only person who could even help him find her was a small blonde girl who offered a 'she went home' before flitting off to try and flirt her way into free drinks from another dancer.

Wandering through the penthouse floor Merlin began checking random doors in hope of finding Gwen's. A majority of the doors didn't open, leading him to begin an extensive game of knocking on each door before hiding behind a corner to allow unamused neighbors to blame each other for their confusion.

The game didn't help him find Gwen but it did cure his boredom.

He had almost made it through a second floor of penthouse suits before finding an unlocked door budged open at his knocking. The foyer was almost completely blocked by different cardboard boxes; Merlin doubted he could have pushed the door open any further even if he wanted to.

"Anybody home?" he asked, a bit curious as to why the door would be left unlocked.

The sound of a person inside the flat stumbling answered his question as he saw a few box being shoved out of the foyer in order to open the door fully. A mess of brown curls peaked around a stack of boxes as Merlin was allowed inside, its owner laughing lightly at a joke he must have just missed.

"Merlin!" Guinevere giggled, her gaze a bit hazier than he remembered. "What are you doing here?"

"Just visiting," he said, helping Gwen make her way through the box maze to find the living room. "You still unpacking?"

"Yup, a lot of this is stuff Mithian doesn't need but I didn't think there'd be so much!" Guinevere's giggling persisted as she took a seat on a chair that came with the flat. She motioned for Merlin to join her but he passed up on the offer, taking a moment to look over everything as she calmed herself down. "I could give you a tour but I almost fell in the kitchen, so I'm avoiding there for a while."

For someone like Guinevere the clutter seemed a tad out of character, and he couldn't understand for the life of him why falling would have made her laugh so hard. Dance equipment scattered itself across the room with shoes and rehearsal clothes draped over coffee tables and chairs alike. The only thing in the room that didn't seem to be a part of the move or her work was a small orange bottle sitting on a table in front of Gwen, the cap left slightly undone.

Taking another look at Gwen he began to realize there wasn't any joke he was missing, but a dosage he hadn't taken.

"You feeling okay, Gwen?" he asked, moving over to read the label on the pills without a complaint from his giggling friend.

"I'm fine, Merlin," she said, drawing out his name before laughing at herself. "I'm just a little dizzy, and you're a little blurry."

Closing the bottle for her Merlin allowed her to laugh at her own joke for a while longer before putting it far out of her reach. He doubted she would be harmed by taking more pills than necessary, but he wasn't about the to back to Arthur to tell him either.

"You can't take more than two of these a day, okay Gwen? You look like you're drunk." Guinevere frowned, her laughter fading quickly as Merlin moved to sit beside her.

"Morgana said I could take however many I wanted, and I feel fine," she protested.

"Morgana's not a doctor, I don't even know what those are for, but lay off them for a little, okay?" She grumbled in protest, crossing her arms stubbornly. "If you keep taking them like this I'm going to have to tell Arthur you know. I don't want to but he's worried about you being around his cousin. Help me out here would you?"

At the mere mention of Arthur's name Guinevere's entire demeanor began to sober up. Her eyes dropping to the ground as she leaned against Merlin for balance. He didn't know what was going on inside her head, and he doubted she would be able to tell him even if she wanted to. But for a moment, he almost thought he saw guilt hiding behind her hazy gaze.

"I've got this under control… It was just one time, it wont happen again I promise." Guinevere's tone began to change, sounding almost desperate as she continued. "Just don't tell Arthur. You can't tell Arthur. I'll handle this."

Merlin wasn't entirely sure what she was talking about but he knew better than to ask. Lightly he put an arm around her shoulders, keeping her from tipping over.

"I've got you Gwen, I wont say a thing."


	11. Chapter 11

Catch Me I'm Falling

_When love is for the highest bidder there can be no trust…_

* * *

_"…Guns and Gangsters suit me fine— Al Capone is a buddy of mine. He's my big shot valentine, lets be bad!" Guinevere's voice sung out over the sound of costumes jingling as the dancers moved around her in perfect harmony with the music._

_ Each dancer seemed to be moving faster than the next as they overtook Gwen in a matter of moments. The faces of her male partners passing her as they spun her on with her role. Her words lost in a haze of glittering dresses and smiling faces as she tried to keep up with the song. Her breath would run out, her feet would slip, she missed move after move as the dance went on without her._

_ She was truly lost. _

_The stage and the show were eating her alive as her eyes scanned the crowd. Her voice failed the song but no one else broke character as she fell to her knees. She needed to have something to anchor to, someone to dance for as her character did. Her gaze became frantic as she searched for the one person who could pull her out of the haze._

_And like the red sea parting there he sat, flanked by other patrons enjoying the show far more than his deep blue eyes gave away. Gwen felt her voice return as she tried to sing out her next lines as if they were for him, knowing they rang out stronger than any of her previous attempts. Yet the man sat unfazed._

_Hands crossed over Guinevere's body as she was pulled up off her knees, forced back into the dance. She could feel herself being passed from one man to the next, and as everyone in the theater took it as flirtatious the sullen man's face seemed to drop into what could only be described as utter disappointment._

_Gwen could do nothing as he stood to leave her to the horde of dancers pulling her through the steps. She felt herself reaching out to him in a desperate attempt to bring him back, to remind him he was the only one who mattered, but her effort was in vane. As soon as her arm extended past the stage floor a new man's hands closed around her wrist, moving her arm like a puppet's back to her chest._

_The new man's hands roamed over her body with a delicate care as they forced her through the remainder of the dance. Her anchor had left the theater. Her puppet master now held her in his arms. Her body started to feel sick._

_The stage went black._

"She fell?" A familiar voice steered Gwen from her sleep.

"That's right. Hit her head pretty hard, she was delirious when I found her so I thought I'd do like you said and take care of her. She'll be fine after a little rest." Her head felt fine, dizzy and confused, but certainly not from a fall.

No, falling would have been easier to deal with.

This was entirely her fault. She knew it was. Morgana told her the pills would help nerves but she should have known better than to take so many over the idea of telling Arthur about the dinner. She couldn't remember what she was so frightened of, they'd been so close already he wouldn't leave her over a simple business dinner.

Yet he had left her in the dream.

And she knew very well she wouldn't be talking about business over her dinner.

"You should have called me sooner, Merlin. I don't need you taking care of someone who's actually sick." As Gwen woke up she could distinctly recognize Arthur's voice.

She never realized how easy it was to hang on every word he spoke or how terrible she felt when she heard his worry. It certainly wouldn't be the last time she'd hear it either.

"I take care of you when you're sick all the time. All she needed was to lay down, she fell asleep in a second." She made a note to thank Merlin for covering for her when she could think clearly again.

While the two continued their bickering Guinevere took a moment to become aware of her surroundings. Merlin had somehow managed to move her to the master bedroom in her half-unboxed penthouse and tucked her in with the utmost care. Her head had been resting on a pillow but once her body felt a shift of weight on the bed she found her head nestled comfortably against Arthur's chest as he ran his hand through her hair as if to check that she was still in one piece. His heartbeat was quicker than she had expected, almost as if he was angry over something before finding her.

She'd be damned if she didn't feel a warm sense of calm wash over her body as Arthur pulled her closer against his chest. She'd feel guilty for what she had to do later. Whether the medication still had a hold of her actions or if they were her own Guinevere wasn't certain, but she held no complaint when she found herself wrapping her arms around Arthur's broad chest to ensure the calm feeling lasted as long as possible.

The bickering stopped the moment she moved.

"Guinevere..?" Arthur asked tentatively, his grip on her waist tightening lightly.

"M'sorry," she slurred in response. "'Should've been more careful…"

"It's not your fault, Gwen. You didn't know." Merlin's voice was sincere but she knew he wasn't talking about some imaginary fall. "It just can't happen again."

_I can't promise that…_ "I'll try my best… the floors are very slippery," she said, allowing Arthur to support her weight.

Merlin didn't like her response and she could tell, but he wouldn't ague with her in her current state or while Arthur was around and for that she was thankful. Neither he nor Arthur would understand the pressure of being in the show without him and Lancelot added to the mix. She could count on her hand all the actors she knew who used more than she had regularly, even Marilyn Monroe had.

Of course that wasn't a comparison she was too eager to complete.

"I should sue Morgana, she's not fit to run the theater like that," Arthur said with certainty.

Guinevere could feel his voice reverberating in his chest and something told her he meant the alleged fall was only the tip of the iceberg for him. She would deal with whatever he knew about the theater later. Right now the only thing that mattered was for her to keep him as close as she could, she couldn't risk losing him like she had in the dream.

"It's fine, Arthur. I can handle this," Gwen said in an attempt to be reassuring, cuddling against his chest to keep him calm. "I just need some rest like Merlin said, I'll make it up to you after rehearsal tomorrow."

"You should take tomorrow off to rest, we can be together Friday, even Morgana would understand," Arthur said, his voice softening as he held her.

Gwen couldn't let her feelings for him get in the way, however. Morgana wouldn't understand her throwing away all that money and a completely financed show. She'd made her bed the day she let Morgana in and she'd gotten her claws deep enough into Gwen that the idea of escape was harder to imagine than the idea of balancing her act with Lancelot and her time with Arthur.

The certainly couldn't be together Friday.

"Mithian's teaching me something then," Gwen lied with an ease that frightened her. "It'll have to be tomorrow."

She could feel Arthur's full lips against her forehead as her stomach sank. She doubted his adoration would last but she'd be damned if she didn't hold onto it as long as she could.

She needed, and come what may, she loved him despite herself.

"Then it'll be tomorrow," he said gently, his strong arms holding her as if he feared he'd break her. "I'll let her borrow you on Friday but I'm not going to share you with someone else so easily, you remind her that okay?"

There was no escaping her guilt. She hated how much she'd be hurting him but she feared what would become of them if Morgana knew he was the source of her apprehension over stringing Lancelot along.

"Okay."

xXx

Guinevere had attended the next morning's rehearsal but it was obvious to anyone giving her more than a single glance that she was absent mentally. Mithian noted how her dance with Percival was messier than usual, her steps dragging as her weight shifted awkwardly. Even the constantly kind man couldn't pretend to be attracted to her while she danced, he and the rest of the cast simply seemed too concerned over Gwen's sudden distraction to care about her performance.

Mithian, however, recognized exactly what was making Gwen sick. She'd come into rehearsal with the same dazed hangover for weeks at a time before she grew too cold to need the medicine. Morgana had already begun destroy Gwen as she had destroyed Mithian, but she'd made a promise to protect her.

The last thing she intended to do was to give Morgana the satisfaction of making a new servant to take her place. Helping Guinevere would kill two birds with one stone and for the first time since she arrived Mithian wouldn't be hurting someone innocent to get back on top.

The only person she'd be harming would be Morgana and that was long over due.

Morgana sat in the back of the theater, the sickeningly sweet smile plastered across her face as she spoke to the investor. Mithian recognized the scene with frightening ease and suddenly her promise to keep Gwen safe became more than just a means to an end. The woman Mithian had replaced must have known what she was in for yet she let her fall nonetheless. She couldn't bring herself to condemn another girl to the same fate she had suffered.

It wasn't as though Morgana had anything to threaten her with anymore anyway. Losing someone out of spite would risk exposing the second half of the theater's profits to the media. Even Pendragon money couldn't keep that hidden if it was discovered.

"We've been going through the endings, Guinevere is much fonder of her character staying in the club and to be frank I think that'd be easier to sell to a crowd." Morgana's hand covered Lancelot's lightly, her smile as sweet as the one she used to convince her girls to take whatever medication she presented them with. "You'd recover the money you've invested within the first week I assure you."

Mithian grabbed a tray of drinks from the bar, heading in Morgana's direction.

"I understand that, but I don't believe it makes sense," Lancelot said, his voice far more endearing than Mithian liked to admit. Keeping him from Guinevere might prove difficult. "I want the second ending, it's still your love story just tweak a few things."

The tray of drinks found their way to the table as Mithian leaned over Morgana's chair. As far as Lancelot knew they were still on good terms and they both knew Morgana was too involved in her nice-woman act to argue in front of an investor.

"What kinds of things? We're having a hard enough time teaching Gwen as is. You can't just pull out the rug from her feet now," Mithian said, her gaze fixed on Lancelot's.

"Nothing that would hurt her!" he defended. "Just turning her more towards the gangster, you could even throw in a number between just them in exchange for one with the owner."

Morgana was visibly uncomfortable and Mithian had no intention of easing her pain.

"We'll consider it. Any more suggestions?"

Lancelot's dark brown eyes lit up, a small smile on his lips as he looked over to the dancers. "Well I had been thinking it would be exciting to kill someone off in the end. You are dealing with the mob, and I'm sure the crowd would love it."

Mithian felt her stomach clench up. They had never done a death scene in the company before because men didn't seem fond of spending money on a woman they had seen die. That meant if someone was to be offed it would have to be one of the people who weren't up for private meetings and there was only one girl promised exclusivity.

But before she could protest Morgana's own face lit up, her perfectly applied lipstick parting as she smiled. "That will certainly be considered, though the price may go up for a death sequence. If we want to do it right."

"That will be fine. I look forward to it." Lancelot's smile was incredibly innocent for a man paying money for a woman.

Suddenly Mithian realized Arthur wouldn't be the only person aiming to take Guinevere away from the theater. Her job had just gotten twice as complicated.

xXx

The hangover would not leave easily and Gwen soon began to doubt that it ever would. Rehearsal had come and gone without any major flaws mainly do to the fact Gwaine and Percival were so concerned for her health that they didn't bother to point out whenever she slipped up. She could hardly think outside her pounding headache, but whenever she did manage her thoughts turned directly back to Arthur.

She felt terrible for what she was going to do to his trust in her but she refused to take the pills to dull herself again. The pills put too much at risk, her own autonomy seemed to give way to whatever her body was feeling at the moment the pills took over. If she was hungry she'd have eaten anything she could, if she was hot she'd take off all her clothes, if she was in pain she'd have taken anything to stop it. There was no way she would willingly give the pills control while she wanted to numb herself.

If she could only keep Arthur for a little while longer she had every intention of remembering it on her own accord.

"That stage suits you."

She would have recognized his voice from a mile away. It resonated in her chest with a warm that surprised her in the emptiness of the theater and managed to chase away the remainder of her hangover.

Looking down at him from the stage as she had when they first began speaking she felt her heart quicken. He stood at the edge of the dance floor staring up to her with the same small smirk he had worn the first night.

To say the stage suited him as well would have been a dramatic understatement; he simply seemed to fit as if that was exactly where he was meant to be.

"I'm glad you think so at least. Mithian's worried it's all too much for me," Gwen said as she sat down at the edge of the stage, her legs dangling above the ground.

"Well you are rather short," Arthur smirked. "You'd think that stage would swallow you up."

With an exaggerated roll of her eyes Guinevere helped Arthur onto the stage beside her. She knew he didn't need to be helped up, but any excuse to pull him closer was greatly welcomed.

"I've got people to balance me out. Percival is at least a head taller than you and most of my scenes are with him," she teased, telling go of his arm to walk around the makeshift stage.

"Percival? Now there's another man running around besides that investor?" The hint of jealousy in his voice was obvious as she sat atop a raised platform.

"There's Gwaine too, I dance with him an Percival the most." Gwen couldn't help but smirk, at least with her partners she knew he had nothing to worry about. Teasing him about something purely innocent couldn't hurt. "Gwaine's more hands on than Percival though. I'm supposed to learn a tango piece with him later."

Arthur was practically brimming with jealously as he moved over to stand in front of Gwen. Even while she sat on the raised platform he managed to stay slightly taller. His hands on either side of her legs as she smiled down to him, the twinkle in her brown eyes giving up her game before he had the chance to confront her. A pout breaking out across his lips at the small blow to his pride as he realized he had been played.

"Oh that's just not fair, how am I supposed to compete with three other men?" he played along, keeping close to her with his endearing pout plastered across his face.

"Luckily for you I can't seem to win over Percival." Ignoring the pout became increasingly difficult the longer she watched him. "I'm not very good at making people love me apparently."

"I wouldn't say that," the playful tone in his voice dropping immediately.

Guinevere felt her heartbeat quicken at the shift in the conversation. It was too much to ask that he felt anything for her when she knew she would only hurt him. They could sleep together and enjoy each other as much as possible but the idea that they could share more than a common attraction hurt. She would never be able to forgive herself if anything past flirting happened with Lancelot if that was true.

"I'm sure of it, the dance is supposed to be able to seduce the audience and I only manage to step on Percival's feet," she said, unaware of the small space between them being closed. "Vivian thinks I'm just not that good an actress."

"Maybe it's Percival's fault. Come on, show me the steps and I'll try to help."

"You just want me to dance for you."

"That too."

Arthur's smirk was enough to make the chill of the empty theater melt away; her heart beat quickening as he took her hands his in. With one fluid tug he helped Gwen down from the platform onto the stage floor beside him. Neither said a word as Guinevere took the lead to show him to the center of the stage, leaving his side for a moment to set her phone up to play her music from the front of the stage.

"What kind of music is this?" Arthur asked, his smirk growing into an entire smile as he watched Gwen return to his side.

"Shut up, I like it."

Carefully she took his hands, moving one to her side, keeping the other in her hand. His hands were significantly smaller than Percival's though she doubted anyone's were larger. Even so his hands held her with a strength Percival never had and they created a heat she doubted anyone else could.

Slowly she began to lead him through Percival's steps, quietly explaining where to move and when to pull her closer. What normally felt rigid and mechanical soon became lighter. Her own steps mirroring Arthur's with a natural flow she had only come close to experiencing once before during her audition.

It was then that she realized it wasn't how she was dancing that had been the problem but who she was dancing with. While with Percival the dance seemed like only a job, with Arthur it fit. She felt right. She didn't have to pretend to want him because she did; with every fiber of her being she wanted him.

And she knew he wanted her.

The music slowly started to pick up and with it there steps. Moving in a perfect grace the two took hold over the stage. Keeping to the steps Guinevere pulled away, trailing her hand down Arthur's arm before he grabbed hold of her wrist, pulling her back to him with a need she had never seen before.

"_…Sing out this song and I'll be there by your side."_

For the show Gwen would have to sing to Percival, but for now she took the moment to stay by Arthur's side as the music played. Their movements getting closer together before one or the other pulled away keeping a safe distance as they revolved around the stage.

Arthur's hands always managed to hold onto hers to pull her back, to trace her hips as they circled each other, to hold onto her waist when he lifted her. His need for her combined with his strength making each lift better than the last.

_"Storm clouds may gather, storms may arise. But I love you…"_

He lifted her again, allowing her to place her arms on his shoulders, their gazes heavy as he looked up to her.

"…Until the end of time," Guinevere found herself muttering to the song, Arthur's grip on her waist tightening as he lowered her to his level.

_"Come what may."_

Their bodies were already pressed together, Guinevere's hands running across Arthur's broad shoulders to pull his hands off her waist, holding onto them fiercely. She had forgotten any promise to Morgana, to Lancelot, or to the theater.

_"Come what may!"_

Arthur's lips hovered over hers, a thousand unspoken words covered for him by the song.

_"I will love you, until my dying day…"_

Before either of them had time to realize if they had uttered the words first or if the song had beaten them to it their lips collided with a force they couldn't stop. Arthur kissing with such a heated passion Guinevere found her self allowing his tongue in within moments, her hand letting go of his to knot his soft blonde hair between her fingers. Her tongue battling his as he moved her backstage to hide amongst the curtains.

She forgot whatever pain she was bound to cause him, she needed him far too much to let him go.

Against her better judgment she loved him and as she soon heard through a flurry of kisses against her neck as they worked their way out of their clothes before pressing themselves against the wall, he loved her.

Every inch of her body burned aching for his touch, her dance clothes finding themselves tossed to the side with his expensive get up. Her legs wrapping around his waist as he pressed her back against the wall with a simple strength that she adored. A hard throbbing pressing against the side of her thigh before she positioned him at her entrance, allowing him inside her with a sharp gasp that echoed across the empty stage.

Her grip on his hair tightened as he kissed down to her chest, moving his mouth over one breast with a heat that sent shivers up her spine. Slowly he began to move inside her, sucking and biting the hardened nub of flesh between his teeth as he did so.

Guinevere's free hand raked across his shoulders, feeling the definition of each muscle as he moved below her. His hips moving against him inside her faster causing her to moan in pleasure. His name escaping her lips as he moved back up to kiss her neck. Everything about him made her body shiver with delight as he began to match the fire of his kisses with the strength of his thrusts.

Arthur's hands trailed across her body absentmindedly, grabbing at anything and everything they could as her legs tightened around his waist. With one careful movement he pushed the arm she had around his shoulders back against the wall. Holding onto her hand tight to give him something to grip he began to move quicker until he felt her body tighten around him when he made contact to the sweet bundle of nerves that caused her to arch her back.

His body melding with hers until neither could tell whose pleasure came from which person. Their bodies tensing up in tandem as the pleasure overtook them both. Moans of 'Arthur' and 'Guinevere' filling the theater long after the music had ended but they had no care over being heard.

They loved each other and come what may they would not let the other forget it.

At least not willingly.

* * *

Songs used:

_Lets be bad_- NBC's SMASH

_Come what may-_ Moulin Rouge!


	12. Chapter 12

Sound Check

_And without trust, there can be no love_

* * *

It wasn't until light began to pour in through the floor length windows that the pair began to stir. They had spent until the early hours of the morning together, fumbling around through the empty theater up to Guinevere's flat. Their need for one another overcoming any concern about the numerous boxes still packed that they had shoved out of their way to allow them to be together in nearly every room in the penthouse. The chaos of the previous night slowly came into view as the light continued to break through the curtains much to Arthur's disdain.

He considered getting up to close the curtains fully seeing as they must've been pushed ajar sometime during their trip from the living room to the bedroom, but before he could convince himself to move off the bed a small mutter of protest came from below him. Slowly through the early morning haze he became aware of Guinevere's small body tucked against his own, his arm easily hooking itself around her waist as she slept peacefully.

No amount of light pouring into the room could bring him to stir her from her sleep. He had lost his chance to hold her the last time they slept together and there was very little that would have convinced him to give the opportunity up now that he had it. She looked far too at peace for him to bring himself to stir her anyway.

His stomach on the other hand, had different plans.

Within five minutes of his waking his stomach awoke as well, growling in protest of having gone so long without being satisfied. Unlike the rest of his body the night with Guinevere had taken it's toll on his stomach seeing as getting to eat out and eating Gwen out didn't quiet add up as far as it was concerned. And without Merlin walking around the flat there was little he could do but wait to wake up his sleeping partner.

The constant rumbling from his stomach continued for several more minutes before Guinevere began to wake up of her own accord. Arthur would tell himself the lights had woken her in order to keep away the guilt of stirring her but there was no denying she felt his stomach nearly as much as he did.

"You can't just be quiet can you…?" she asked, her eyes still closed. "The snoring was one thing but this is just annoying."

Her sweet sleepy voice made the words sting a little less than she might have intended, but he had heard far worse from Merlin.

"I do not snore." Gwen laughed. "It's not like I can help it anyway. It just happens."

Slowly opening her eyes Guinevere rolled over without moving his arm from her waist, her forehead tucked neatly under his chin as she kissed the top of his bear chest. Her thin arms wrapping themselves around his easily before she pulled herself up to kiss his chin; if he had known her to be so affectionate in the morning he would have woken her sooner.

"You snore. I considered smothering you with a pillow after you fell asleep," she said as she placed another kiss along his jawline. "What's your excuse for the stomach?"

"Well I had been planning on taking you to dinner but we got distracted."

A small smirk played across his face before Guinevere shoved him away playfully. She too was smiling at the memory but he doubted she had been as foolish as to go without eating before they met up. It wasn't as though she needed as much to keep running as he did, she was almost half his size, he could have eaten enough for the both of them easily.

"Well what do you want to do about it? Merlin says you're a lousy cook."

"But you're a good one, aren't you?"

"I'm not making you breakfast. You're the one who skipped dinner."

Arthur stuck out his bottom lip slightly, his eyebrows rising to finish off a well-practiced pout that could even convince Merlin to wash his socks. Within a matter of seconds Guinevere too caved, her laughter filling the room with a wonderful melody.

"Fine, but you have to help. You're not getting breakfast in bed in my bed. Hell you should be the one getting me breakfast." With a light kiss Gwen wormed her way out of Arthur's grasp, climbing off the bed to cover herself with a large shirt that barely passed the top of her shapely thighs. A sight in its own that could convince Arthur to do whatever she'd like.

He had his pout, but she had her entire being to command him with. There was simply no competition to be had between the two. He was hers, no contest.

"Next time you're over I'll have Merlin bring us breakfast in bed as many times as you'd like." Arthur moved from the bed, reluctantly pulling his boxers back on before following Gwen to the kitchen. "He's rather fond of you so the real challenge would be to make sure he'd bring me the food too."

Her smile was simply dazzling in the morning light as she began to get out different ingredients, ordering Arthur to pick up certain items stashed away in the cupboards simply because she could. There was a simple domesticity to the process that Arthur adored. It was more than a break from his responsibilities at work, it was a compilation of actions so simple as holding her waist as she cooked that made him believe that just for a moment they could stay together without any outside interference for as long as they wished.

If his promise to Mithian held through and Guinevere returned home with him then maybe, just maybe, it was a vision of what their lives had in store for them after the theater.

It wasn't until a quick set of knocks from the front door broke through the quiet sizzle of bacon that either of them became aware of the outside world. Arthur had half a mind to order the intruder away but Guinevere seemed far more shaken by the jolt of reality than he was comfortable with. It was then that he remembered being pulled back down to earth for her was a far grittier picture than it was for him.

"Stay here, eat but stay quiet," Gwen said as she slipped away from the kitchen, her hands pulling at her hair to cover the collection of marks he had left on her neck. "If it's Morgana you hide in a closet for all I care."

He wanted to write the comment off as a joke, but as she left to open the door he knew she was serious. He had never known Morgana as one who liked to share her things.

"There you are, I've been trying to get a hold of you all morning." A voice that thankfully didn't belong to Morgana said from the doorway.

"You have? I'm sorry I misplaced my phone. What time even is it?" Guinevere was surprisingly good at feigning innocence.

"Almost noon. You're lucky I came by or you'd have to deal with Morgana on your own. She's going to be watching you like a hawk before the dinner." Slowly Arthur recognized the voice as Mithian's as she walked into the apartment. She was no threat but he was too hungry to leave his fresh breakfast so soon.

"I almost forgot that was today." A hint of sadness obvious in Gwen's voice. "Are you positive I can't cancel?"

"Positive. Lancelot might understand but Morgana would be suspicious. As far as she knows you don't have a reason to want to avoid him." Before Arthur could bother sitting down Mithian strode into the kitchen with a confidence that only slightly faltered at the sight of him virtually naked. Somehow he doubted she thought to find him there so soon.

"…I can explain," Guinevere said, putting herself between the two.

"Oh Gwen… Oh you've gone and done it now," Mithian's voice held no anger to Gwen's obvious surprise, only pity.

"Done what?" Arthur asked, finishing his bite of bacon easily. "You knew I cared for her."

The icy look Mithian shot Arthur was enough to stall his appetite for a moment. She pitied Gwen and though she had promised to help them he somehow felt as though she was blaming him for any trouble their being together might cause.

"It's one thing to care for someone but to fool around with them when so much is on the line is just irresponsible! Do you have any idea what could happen if Morgana knew Gwen wasn't exclusively Lancelot's? Or even worse if he found out himself! This isn't some petty problem of who's allowed to date who, these men are just as rich as you with half the moral compass. You're both putting yourselves in harms way and you aren't even trying to hide it!"

Both Guinevere and Arthur are left speechless, their peaceful reality shattered harshly as Mithian easily found the marks he had left across Gwen's body. Neither of them had considered anyone but each other the night before and now it seemed as though they'd risk paying full price. Which at the lasted addition to the show was now well above a hundred thousand dollars, not to mention the cost Lancelot would be paying to have Guinevere for an entire evening.

"I'll give you an hour here Gwen then you come down and we'll start getting you ready. I'll help as much as I can but you have to want to get out of this too," Mithian said, the frustration slowly ebbing away as she headed back to the door. "And Arthur, if you really want to help us just stay out of this for tonight. We can handle Lancelot on our own. Just leave it at that."

He nodded as Gwen walked Mithian back to the door, a quiet reminder to take her pain medication passing over his head as he contemplated his meal. He wanted to help Guinevere more than anything and if doing as Mithian asked would do so then he felt the need to comply.

He was just never good at waiting for someone else to fix his problems for him.

xXx

It seemed the longer they spent in production mode the higher the price went, both for Guinevere and the show. If someone had told Morgana nearly half a million dollars was on the line during any other show she would have called them mad. But Lancelot wanted two things more than anything, one being a show that with a little effort they could move to Broadway by the end of its run, and the second being Guinevere.

She couldn't have wished for better luck but despite her good fortune she had been in the game long enough to know she wasn't out of the woods yet. The entire show relied on Lancelot's compliance to finance and his compliance relied on Guinevere's affection. There was only so many times she could reassuring her client that she was just as enamored with him as he was with her before he demanded to see proof.

Everything she had worked so hard to secure was relying on the success of the dinner to continue. If Lancelot left her now she would risk having her side business found out, or even worse having to acknowledge her failure to Uther Pendragon himself.

She had worked too long to separate herself from him to be willing to go back now. The last thing she wanted was any Pendragon coming to do her job for her.

The sooner she could set the deal with Lancelot in stone the better.

_This would be much easier if Mithian would stop meddling too_, she thought, the piles of paper in front of her carefully laid out with the woman in question's resume on the top.

She had placed so much faith in Mithian that she did not consider the possibility of her turning against her. The promise of fame and fortune had kept her in line for a while but as soon as she had replaced her she knew her hold was lost. The only thing keeping Mithian from reporting what she knew to the authorities was her one ace in the hole.

Mithian may have tricked her old competition into crossing Morgana but at the end of the day only one person really had the ability to remove someone from the theater. A debt collector that ensured anyone who kept the theater from losing any money if a client fell through or if a dancer was let go was the only person above Morgana in rank. While Morgana kept the theater running he kept it safe, taking care of any threat to her businesses wellbeing.

After all, with a name like Mordred it didn't take much to scare people back into line. She couldn't have asked for a better fit for a partner.

He was the power behind any of her threats and the last straw if Mithian continued trying to come between her and Lancelot's deal. She had only used his services once before to deal with a man who refused to pay for Mithian's time out of some strange notion that her feelings for him were genuine. Thankfully Mithian had taken so many of Gaius' pills that she could not protest Mordred's disposal of the man.

With any luck she wouldn't need to call him in again, Guinevere seemed far more compliant than Mithian had and Lancelot was far more obedient than the previous investor. As long as Mithian didn't meddle too much there would be any need to call Mordred for anything more than to be her plus one for opening night as usual.

Agravaine helped the show but he held no real power like she or Mordred did. It was her theater with his protection. If Mithian attempted to cross her she'd be crossing him as well.

And no one would question anyone's disappearance if Mordred told them to forget about it.

She could even remove Arthur if she wanted.

He was simply an inconvenience at the moment as well as the annoying reminder that until she could move a show from the resort to a bigger venue she would remain in the Pendragon shadow. His vacation couldn't end soon enough as far as she was concerned, but she'd deal with him later.

At the moment she had a lead actress in need of a pep talk and an orange bottle of bite size insurance to make sure things went according to _her_ plan. The only call she wanted to make to Mordred was a friendly one, but she was not above tying up loose ends. Not when so much was on the line.

xXx

The past three hours had been spent in front of Mithian's old dressing room with enough tugging and pulling at Guinevere's face to last her a month. At her departure from the comfort of her penthouse there hadn't been a single drop of makeup on her face but within the first ten minutes of her seeing Mithian she could scarcely recognize herself. Her lips and eyes painted like an old Hollywood star to match the bouncing curls she had never imagined she would be able to wear naturally. She may not like very much about how the theater was run, but no matter how hard she tried there was nothing she could say against the makeup skills Mithian seemed to have learned.

Even the marks on her neck had been expertly covered up through layers of foundation and a setting powder.

Mithian had managed to turn Norma Jean into Marilyn in a matter of hours. She wanted to thank her, to tell Arthur and show off her hair, to be able to enjoy the new get up, but knowing everything had been put on simply for Lancelot managed to kill all it's beauty. She barely wanted to see him, much less spend four hours in a chair getting done up for a man she didn't even know.

She wanted out.

"I can't do this," Guinevere said for the third time since her hair had been let down. "Pretending with you around is one thing but staying on my own with him for that long—"

"Guinevere listen to me, as long as you do what I say everything will be fine. Keep him distracted, talk about the show, or his job, anything but the two of you together." Mithian had managed to keep Gwen from throwing up so far, but her calm reassurances only lasted so long.

"What if he wants more? Kissing on the cheek maybe, if you really want to push it a peck but I can't even pretend to be interested in Percival, how on earth can I pull this off?"

"Because you have to." Mithian's face was stern, a sad tiredness taking over her frail frame in a matter of seconds. "You tell him no, and I swear I'll have someone there to make sure nothing happens, but you have to make him believe there's only him. At least until I can get you out of this for good."

Guinevere wanted to protest but their conversation was quickly interrupted by the quiet buzzing of her cell phone on the countertop, Arthur's texts popping on the screen for the third time that day before Mithian cleared the screen. Arthur's presence simply made the task at hand more difficult to accomplish and judging by the amount of uncertainty Gwen was already having he was the last influence she needed around.

"Everything will be okay. I'll be covering you at rehearsal tonight and you just have to smile at Lancelot until the dinner's over. Just say you don't want any distractions until opening night and get him to keep the ending where you stay with the owner. Make that seem more important than your relationship with him and he should have no reason to push any further."

"Is that how you dealt with your investors?"

"Gwen, I barely remember being with any of my investors. Keep your head clear and it'll be fine."

Somehow that wasn't very reassuring.

Before Mithian could continue a set of knocks came from the door with a demanding presence that could only belong to one person. The pair didn't even have time to separate from each other's side before the door was pushed open and the tell tale click of Morgana's heals on the tile floor became the only sound in the room.

Mithian seemed to stand taller as the two women regarded each other with ferocity of dozens of accusations left unsaid before Mithian removed her hand from Guinevere's chair. The only reason for her surrender being the fact she couldn't have an angry Morgana storming around with the problem of Lancelot still hanging in the air.

"If you need anything just call," Mithian instructed Guinevere before leaving the room, purposefully bumping Morgana's shoulder on her way out.

The gesture was small and barely noticeable, but Gwen knew Morgana wouldn't forget it. She was merely waiting for the right time to strike and unfortunately for her remaining civil was necessary a little while longer.

"You look wonderful," Morgana said as though the encounter with Mithian never occurred. "How do you feel?"

Guinevere couldn't have kept her mouth closed if she wanted, her anxiety eating away at any composure she had left. "Sick. Please, can't we just tell him to reschedule? This isn't going to work…"

"Of course it is!" Morgana's smile was almost too sincere, her hands holding onto Gwen's shoulders with a possessiveness that surprised her. "Lance already adores you, all you have to do is look pretty and smile. He'll pay for your retirement if you asked him."

"And what if I tell him I don't want to be with him?"

The question sounded innocent enough in her head but the added pressure to her shoulders was a clear sign she had crossed the line.

Morgana's eyes closed, her well-manicured hands doing the best they could to keep from digging into the naked skin underneath them as she knelt down beside Guinevere. A dangerous energy radiating from her like fire as she released her shoulder's to hold Gwen's face with one hand, locking eyes after taking a moment to tone down her anger.

"Let me tell you a little something about the world, Gwen. This isn't some fairytale with a prince and a white horse who loves you because you're the fairest in all the land. This is the real world, and it's gritty and it's dirty and we take what we can get. What you want is a stage perfectly lit and a theater full of people loving you like the world never has. Right?"

Despite everything Gwen found herself nodding, Morgana's piercing stare breaking down her resolve slowly.

"Well Lance is the man offering it to you on a silver platter. His offering you everything you could ever want and all he's asking for in return are a few kisses and sweet words. He's the best man you can be hoping to get Guinevere. You can't afford to lose him."

Morgana's hands now rested on top of Gwen's, quieting her urges to scream in protest that she was worth so more much than money and some promises. She had Arthur and he loved her. He was worth so much more than Lancelot could ever be worth. He was the one she couldn't afford to lose.

But none of her protests managed to escape her lips as long as Morgana kept their gazes locked.

"Everyone is nervous their first time meeting an investor, but nothing will happen. He cares far to much about you to let you worry." There was the vague sensation of something being pushed against the palm of her hand as Morgana stood up. "You've just let Mithian get inside your head. You wont repeat the same mistakes she did."

Guinevere found herself nodding as she looked back into the mirror. The woman staring back at her seemed a complete stranger from the red smile to the sultry black eyes. If there was any consolation to the deal it was that this woman would be meeting Lancelot and not the Guinevere who had spent the morning by Arthur's side.

"Good. Now take a few of these and you'll be fine. It's just a little stage fright."

Slowly Gwen lowered her eyes to her open palm. The unmistakable shape of the pills she had specifically elected to avoid now calling to her. She counted four, twice what Merlin had deemed safe on an empty stomach. She doubted any were safe to take on top of pain medication.

But she knew it was even less safe to cross Morgana a second time.

Her phone buzzed, a desperate cry from Arthur to talk to him. Morgana's hand clamped over her own, lifting the pills to her mouth. The woman in the mirror closed her eyes.

Guinevere swallowed the pills.

The woman smiled.


	13. Chapter 13

Roxanne

_Jealousy, yes jealousy, will drive you mad._

* * *

"_Hello there, you've reached Gwen LeoDegrace. I can't take a call right now, but if you leave a quick message I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Thank you!"_

"Guinevere, it's Arthur. Again… call me, please. I need to hear from you."

Desperation was not a quality Arthur associated with himself frequently, or at all if he could help it. By the fifth attempt to contact Gwen since Mithian's return to the theater however, that had been the only thing he felt. Desperate.

In an attempt to keep from pacing through the entirety of his flat Arthur had left with Merlin to sit in on that night's rehearsals. He had assumed the plan would give him an opportunity to casually run into Guinevere while she was with Lancelot to insure her safety but the only Mithian greeted him at the theater door. Her demeanor only slightly more optimistic than his own as she introduced him to the company.

Percival was kinder than he had expected, Gwaine's description had been spot on, Vivian and the slue of female dancers seemed to have been granted the biggest graces through Guinevere's recollection of the cast. Somehow they all only needed one look before they understood why Arthur had shown up. Their reactions varied as they each took their turn to look him over.

The only thing they all shared seemed to be pity for both him and Gwen.

"At least she's not cheating on you. I mean she did tell you she was going to have to go out with him." Gwaine's attempt at being comforting only earned him a sharp shove from Percival, to which Merlin quickly thanked the man on Arthur's behalf.

The theater had been arranged for the night's rehearsals while both Arthur and Merlin sat on the sidelines, watching everything in an attempt to distract themselves. Mithian had told them everything she had told Guinevere and reassured them she wouldn't have any trouble if she could keep the investor's focus on the show. While the attempt had been appreciated the simple fact that there was the possibility for things to go wrong coupled with the inability to contact her was threatening to drive Arthur insane.

"Serves him right," a not at all hushed whine came from the blonde woman he could only assume was Vivian's mouth. "If he didn't want to deal with her sleeping around he should've kept his nose out of our business."

Arthur shot up, nearly knocking his chair back in his haste. "Don't you dare talk about her like that!"

"Of course maybe it wasn't his nose he needed to control."

Had it not been for Merlin's grasp on Arthur's arm he would have been confronting the smaller dancer head on. The mixture of desperation and anxiety eating away at his common sense as the woman continued to bait him. He knew she was only looking to rile him up, but the last thing he could handle at the moment were insults to his character. Or worse to Gwen's.

Before the blonde could go any farther a sharp mechanical whine cut through the theater. The attention of every single person in the room turning to the stage to see Mithian holding a stage microphone far too close to a speaker, her hard gaze fixed on the smaller blonde until she backed down. It wasn't until then that she stopped the noise and allowed the attention to be focused solely on her.

The weight of her responsibilities weighing her down as she walked to center stage.

"What happened has happened. There's no changing who he's fallen for or who Gwen has to entertain. She knows how much we need Lancelot but she's not an idiot like you, Vivian." A sharp glare forced the smaller woman back to her seat. "She can get the investor without sleeping with him, not all of us had to resort to that."

"I supposed being doped up was better?" Arthur could not tell who had spoken, the theater's full attention fixed on Mithian.

"I did what I thought I had to!" Mithian's voice shook for a moment but her confidence never broke. There were more important things than her pride on the line. "We've all done what we've had to for the show and for Morgana. But fuck Morgana. She's the one who's got us into this mess."

"She's also the one who keeps us all from being homeless," Percival's voice spoke out for a change, simply stating a fact to which many of the cast agreed to.

"The shows are what's doing that. Our faces on stage, the people that come to see us, that's who's keeping us going." Mithian descended from the stage, walking up to face the company directly. "Guinevere knows that so she's going through this for the show. She's going to talk to him to change the ending to what we want instead of what Morgana wants. We can do this without her but not without Gwen."

Merlin's grip on Arthur's arm relaxed.

"And how do you propose we help her?" Arthur's voice came out far quieter than he had hoped, but the fact he had mustered any coherent thought was good enough.

"Your little friend there and Percival can go find where they're dining and keep watch at the door. If something goes wrong you'll be there to help but don't interfere until then or you'll get us all caught."

The two men in question nodded, regarding each other quietly before returning to look at Arthur. He couldn't be trusted to leave the dinner alone and he knew it. If he couldn't go himself he wanted to at least find security in trusting the men taking his place.

"As for the rest of us, we have to learn the tango scene for Guinevere. If Morgana thinks she's making the show suffer things will just get harder. So get into your places and we'll go on without her for the moment."

There was a murmur of agreement as the cast slowly began to move to the floor, Percival and Merlin attempting to reassure Arthur before taking there leave. He was worth more than anyone in the theater combined but at that moment he was completely and utterly useless. He had no choice but to sit and watch the scene before him unfold.

Before the music began Mithian turned to look to Arthur, motioning him forward to the stage.

"You can replace Percival since he's where you'd rather be."

The gesture did little to help but it gave him something to do. Quickly Gwaine explained the dynamics of the scene as Mithian left to start the music. He would be required to do very little besides save a place for Percival to return to and for the most part could do whatever he pleased as long as he kept the idea that he was watching himself lose Mithian in mind. A notion stung with unexpected force as one of the women reminded him Mithian was only a stand in.

Without pause the music started, leaving Arthur at the corner of the stage to watch as Mithian began the walk down to Gwaine. A spotlight being placed over the two once they were together.

"_A dance!"_

The sound of Gwaine's voice in character cut through the theater with a surprising power.

"_That tells the story of a prostitute…"_

The company laughed as he twirled Mithian around, Arthur only seeing how he had spun Guinevere the night before.

"_And a man, who falls in love…"_

Arthur could feel several glances aimed at his direction as Gwaine pulled his partner closer. He doubted there would be any problem with his amateur acting abilities.

"_With her."_

xXx

The world around Guinevere seemed to pass by with blurred edges. Everything around her felt hazy as though she had dreamed up the walk from the dressing room to the resort's private restaurant entirely on her own. She vaguely remembered Morgana mentioning something for good luck or she might have imagined it all together.

She barely realized when Lancelot greeted her or when he led her to their private booth. Under the haze of the medication he looked rather attractive, though even Morgana looked attractive as far as it was concerned. While the pills may have been prescribed to prevent stage fright Guinevere quickly came to the conclusion she'd have trouble just keeping anything to herself.

It's one thing when talk flows easy, it's another thing when it won't stop.

"You look lovely," Lancelot's silky voice said to pull her out of her head.

Guinevere may have thanked him, or she may have meant to, whether the words found there way out of her mouth she wasn't sure. Focusing on the ending of the show seemed to prove even more difficult than she had originally thought.

Lancelot seemed too enchanted to even notice the lull in conversation. It was he who ordered their drinks and both meals, attempted to keep her attention for as long as possible, and brought up any subject from his time in Argentina to Guinevere's family. His affections were almost endearing and through the haze she was certain she would have found him attractive if she had met him under different circumstances.

But he wasn't Arthur and no amount of Medication could change that.

"Morgana's mentioned you working so hard for the show, that's why I haven't been able to take you to dinner before," Lancelot chuckled, trying for a new conversation.

"It does keep me busy," she managed to respond, finding the haze easier to deal with after getting a little food in her system.

"I think it's incredible what you can do on stage. Really I do, Morgana has sent me videos of the rehearsal and I'm very excited to see how you pull off the ending." Lancelot's excitement was almost endearing until she remember he was paying to be with her.

"I love what I do. It's easy if you love it." Gwen took a sip of wine for show, not wanting to mix her haze with any alcohol.

While she drank Lancelot moved over sit beside her, his charming smile only managing to make her head spin with thoughts of regret. He motioned to one of the waiters while she continued to eat as politely as she could manage. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the waiter hand him a rather large velvet box he left on the seat beside him.

Even through her medicated haze she knew the box was intended for her but she paid it no mind. It was difficult enough to remember to keep Lance's mind off the two of them, dealing with any gift he may be trying to bribe her affections with was simply an extra thorn in her side. She'd be glad if she didn't remember any of this in the morning.

"You know, when this show does well you wont have to stay in this little place anymore," he said, brushing a loose curl behind her ear. "I can make a star, a real actress. Not just some dancer."

Guinevere couldn't help herself as her mind began to wander towards the possibility of making it big. The medication surely thought it was a wonderful idea. She however, found the offer wasn't half as appealing when she realized who it was coming from.

Taking her silent contemplation as a good sign Lancelot placed a tentative kiss on her bear shoulder before moving to retrieve the velvet box. Despite her best efforts to ignore the gesture the bright glimmer from the box practically forced her attention down to his hands. Lancelot's delighted smile only adding to the bright glitter.

In the middle of the box sat a necklace rivaling even the tiara she had seen Mithian keep. Rows upon rows of diamonds expertly cut to catch even the slightest hint of light around them. Carefully she trailed a single hand across the centerpiece of the necklace for the sole purpose of feeling its weight. The fact something so beautiful managed to weigh so much was astounding and before she could realize what she was doing she found herself holding her hair out of the way to allow Lancelot to place it around her neck.

The weight of both the necklace and the fact he had been the one to give it to her pressed down against her collarbone with a surprising force. The intricate piece of jewelry covered most of her neck and just barely passed her décolletage with its centerpiece. But no amount of glitter could change it from what it truly was.

A collar is still a collar no matter its price.

"What about the ending?" Gwen stumbled out quickly, distracting Lancelot from placing another kiss on the back of her neck before he could notice the makeup hiding her night with Arthur.

Obviously caught off guard Lancelot frowned, finding the change in conversation less than appealing. "For the show? You can have whichever ending you'd like."

Guinevere smiled, seeing the smallest of opportunities to save the night. Quickly she stood from the booth, motioning for Lancelot to follow her, which he did with unbridled enthusiasm. "Then you should see what they're working on," she said as she took his arm to lead him out of the restaurant. At the mention of their destination being the theater his enthusiasm soured slightly, obviously having different plans in mind.

All it took to convince him was a simple smile and a quick peck on the cheek. She doubted there was anything he wouldn't do if it bought him her affections.

With any luck the rehearsal would be enough to distract him from her long enough to allow her to figure out a way to end the night without angering Morgana. Had she been completely aware of the man following her she might have noticed the fact his mind wasn't on the rehearsal at all. No amount of distractions could take away from the fact he had just marked her as his.

Even in the dark theater the diamonds around her neck still sang out his claim.

xXx

A blur of dancers paraded around Arthur, moving in perfect unison as they mimicked the two leads. Bodies pressed against one another before being tossed back, legs extended to trail across the floor as a partner went down or lifted the other. A constant ebbing and flowing of men and women tormenting each other with the fact they were not only for them. All the movements and all the dancers simply managing to separate the leads from the rest of the group.

Leaving Arthur to wander through them in an attempt to make it to the woman pretending to be his Guinevere.

_"His eyes upon your face, his hand upon your hand…"_

Arthur could not sing to the music as it was played and had resolved to simply speak the words as he watched the two dance. A perfect image of Guinevere coming to mind as he made his way to center stage. Gwaine's figure easily matching what little he had seen of the investor whenever his back was turned.

_"His lips caress your skin._"

His stomach dropped, his throat catching for a moment as another dancer stole Mithian away to place a heavy kiss on the back of her neck. Each dancer resembling the investor the closer they came to holding the Gwen stand-in.

_"It's more than I can stand!"_

Somewhere between watching her being passed around as a doll and the endless sea of dancers separating him from her Arthur had found his voice. As raw and untrained as it may be he no longer had to act the part. He was watching himself lose Guinevere and no technicalities could lessen the blow.

Slowly he made his past the dancers, finding the couples arrange themselves in rows around him as he walked up to the stage. With a simple step he found himself staring out across the sea of dancers into the theater below them The hundreds of seat completely empty save for the one private booth high above them all.

"_You're free to leave me._"

The curtains of the booth pulled open to reveal the actual Guinevere watching the rehearsal with glazed eyes. Her usual smile completely absent as she held onto the balcony railing. Dozens of expensive diamonds catching the faint lights to sparkle down on the stage seemingly fixed on him.

"_Just don't deceive me,_" Arthur sang out, locking eyes with her as he started back down the stage. The sickening sight of Lancelot's lips kissing her shoulders impossible to ignore from any distance. "_Please, believe me when I say I love you._"

For a moment the entire theater fell silent. All eyes seemingly fixed on him as he gazed up at the lead and her investor from the dance floor. The air grew cold as he waited for her to acknowledge him, the glazy look in her eyes starting to fade as they held contact with his. A brief flash of recognition passing across her face as the man behind her kissed up her neck.

"…_Come what may…_" The music seemed to change solely for Gwen as she allowed him the faintest smile. "_I will love you, until my dying day…"_

The words barely carried enough strength to reach where he stood but he knew them too well to have them escape. Against his better judgment he returned her smile, feeling as though the quiet promise would be enough to shield them from any harm.

It wasn't until Arthur took a stop back that his eyes locked with Lancelot's, the smile still on his face as the man realized the words weren't for him.

xXx

"No," Guinevere whispered, breaking the gaze with Arthur when the feeling of lips left her neck.

Had she been sober hundreds of excuses may have crossed her mind, thousands of ways to cover the small misstep in her judgment, anything would have been better than a simple 'no'. The combination of the numerous pills and the wine however, seemed to be wining in a way that even Morgana couldn't hope to benefit from. She had been caught.

Lancelot knew.

With the snap of his fingers the balcony curtains were closed, his hand tracing a slightly smudged area of skin at the top of her neck. A mark from Arthur clearly visible in the dark booth thanks to the glimmer of her necklace. Her investors face contorting behind her shoulder into something darker than she could ever have imagined him capable of.

"You made me believe you loved me," he said, barely biting back his rage.

"No. No I did nothing. Morgana's the one—"

"Quiet!"

The pressure of his hand on her neck increased as she attempted to make excuses. She took a step back but he followed suit, backing her into the wall of the booth like an animal catching its prey. The pain in his eyes forcing her to look down as he closed the gap between them. She refused to believe she had been the one to betray him, any affection he felt for her was misplaced.

She refused to be bought off no matter how heavy the collar around her neck was.

"We made a deal. You are supposed to be mine." He practically begged her to take back everything, to give up Arthur and whatever else was keeping them apart but Gwen didn't budge.

The only thing she knew through the haze was that she wanted to leave. Her eyes locked on Lancelot's as he realized no contract could sign her over to him. He had spent a small fortune insuring her success for nothing. He had been played for a fool.

His grip on her neck tightened, his fingers lacing around the clasp of the necklace, his jaw clenching as he pulled it off in one swift motion, his eyes never leaving hers.

Guinevere gasped at the sharp pain shooting from where the necklace pulled tight before breaking. Panic starting to set in as she realized just how much stronger than her the man was. She tried to run out from under him but her movements were too slow. The medication taking its toll as her body started rejecting the substance in her system.

She couldn't push him away, keep his hands off the back off his dress, or even call out for help.

Lancelot seemed unaware of her deteriorating state as he worked on undressing her. Or he simply didn't care; with his face now buried against her neck there was no way to tell the difference either way.

Her dress hit the floor as his hands dug into her side. She could only manage one weak plea for him to stop before she lost the ability to push him aside. Her head hitting the wall lightly as her body started to go limp under Lancelot's.

_No…_ Seemed to be the only coherent thought she could muster. Her eyes starting to close as a streak of light broke through the booth from behind Lancelot.

Light poured in through the room before a figure nearly as tall as the doorway loomed behind her investor and cast a significantly large shadow. The pressure on her sides disappeared as the man was ripped off her, tossed against the opposite wall with enough force to render him unconscious. A smaller man emerging from the former's shadow.

The sound of her name being spoken registered deep in the back of her mind as she felt lighter hands hold her shoulders. A warm sense of familiarity washing over her as the new man spoke again. He was safe; he was there to help her.

He was there to catch her when the medication took its final toll.

But he couldn't stop the room from going black.

* * *

**A.N.: Admittedly this was the scene that sold me on writing everything in the first place but I'd like to apologize if this was a bit too much.**

**For anyone interested here is the link to how the scene was portrayed in the movie: watch?v=s12XiAOtjcg . I highly recommend you watch it.**

**Thank you so much for your continued support, I've been having a difficult time lately and your reviews never fail to make my day. Thank you.**


	14. Chapter 14

Ticket Price

_Today's the day when dreaming_

_Ends_

* * *

Time seemed to slow as Gwen was moved from the balcony to her flat. The blurred outline of the two men she had to thank for her rescue never strayed from her vision. Drifting in and out of consciousness they were the one constant as her body jostled back and forth. She assumed it was the taller man who carried her, seeing as she the smaller didn't seem to have the muscle for the job but she lacked the strength to check.

All she knew was she was safe. A notion frequently repeated by one or both of the men until she was placed down on top of a vaguely familiar mattress.

Before she had time to listen to either of the men speaking the medication had taken its hold, forcing her to sleep off the remainder before she could bother with thinking properly. She had no dreams and had no recollection of stirring to pull herself under the covers. She could barely even remember when her eyes closed.

It was only when the weight of the bed below her began to shift that she found herself waking up, the last of the medication leaving her mind in favor of a piercing headache and vague memories of her actions. With a tilt of her head she saw the unmistakable silhouette of a scrawny man with rather large ears fussing over her hair.

A small tug at a lock of hair pinned behind her head elicited a groan to signal that she was still capable of feeling pain and managed to startle the man at the same time. If she had the strength she would have hit him.

"You're awake!" Merlin's voice broke through the remaining fog with ease.

"You're loud…" she managed in response, garnering a chuckle from the corner of the room.

As Guinevere's mind began to clear both Percival and Merlin came fully into view. Their face's softened in relief over her waking but the toll of the past night was obvious even to her. Bags under Merlin's eye's from lack of sleep and the worry lines etched into Percival's forehead only fueled the feeling of guilt building up in the pit of her stomach. She had cost them both precious hours of sleep and had nothing more to show for it than a guilty conscious and a small hangover.

But the guilt the pair inspired was nothing compared to the guilt brought on by Arthur.

For a brief moment she hoped her condition had gone unreported and life would resume to normal without her, but as fate and one eagerly placed phone call from Merlin would have it, she had no such luck. In a matter of seconds Arthur burst through her apartment doors with Mithian in tow. A rushed synopsis of the night passing overhead from Merlin to the two on their way to the bed.

It wasn't until the mention of the position she had been found in that Arthur seemed to pay attention, his face dropping as he sat beside Gwen.

"Percival knocked him out, but we just really knew she had to leave and—"

"What happened?" Arthur cut Merlin off without care, his blue eyes locking onto hers urgently.

With as much strength as she could muster Guinevere pulled herself upright in her bed, her hands clasping onto his to pull him close. Finding the right way to answer him was taking up too much time. Worry began flooding through the deep blue she had come to cherish as the words refused to form properly. In an attempt to by herself more time she shook her head weakly, finding the simple task difficult with the growing hangover.

"N-nothing," she finally managed, having her small frame wrapped into Arthur's arms automatically. "I couldn't, I couldn't lie to him. I tried b-but he saw you and I just couldn't pretend…"

Arthur's arms tightened around her, his hand gripping the back of her head to pull her close as if he feared she would disappear the second he let go. Quiet mutterings of how everything was okay found there way to her ear to slowly lift the guilt sitting heavy on her heart.

By the time her guilt had washed away fresh tears began dripping down her cheeks. Her arms finding the strength to wrap around his shoulders as she reveled in the fact she had not lost him. There was still a chance they could both walk away from things unharmed.

As long as she had Arthur she could pull through.

"Leave with me, please," Arthur muttered quietly, his grip never loosening.

"What?" she asked afraid the headache and tears had started to affect her hearing.

"Leave with me. Away from here! I can get two plane tickets by tomorrow and we'll be hundreds of miles away before anyone even notices." Arthur reluctantly let Gwen go, his hands cupping her face to ensure she can hear him properly. "You and me both, we'll leave and never come back."

The offer was almost too good to believe. While she loved the stage and the company she had gotten to know the chance to run away with the man she loved even more sounded like heaven. Even Mithian seemed eager for her to accept.

There was no way she could have brought herself to say no.

"I'll start packing," she said as a smile broke out across her face.

A relieved laugh from Arthur punctuated his pulling her into another tighter hug. Smiles donned across the room as the pair shared one last heavy kiss before Guinevere was helped off the bed. Had it not been for the three onlookers present she doubted they would have stopped at a simple kiss.

But before they could go any farther Mithian's hand on her arm pulled her away from Arthur as quickly as she could manage.

"I'll take you down to the dressing rooms, we'll be back as soon as everything's packed." Mithian pulled gently until Guinevere was standing on her own. The two both smiling eagerly for their own reasons.

In a final temporary goodbye Arthur kissed her forehead hard, having every intention to kiss her properly when she returned.

They'd have all the time in the world to make up for her rushed exit once they were together. They could write to Mithian and see how Morgana reacted to their departure once they were safely far away.

For the first time since she had arrived a sliver of hope had found it's way back into Guinevere's heart as she headed back to the dressing room for what she hoped would be the last time.

xXx

"I will not be humiliated like this."

"I can assure you it wont happen again I swear, just give it some time."

"Why would I need to give it time? I've given you more than you've asked, this should have never happened!" With a pointed gesture to the lump on the back of his head Morgana knew she could do nothing to change is mind. "I want what we agreed on or you'll owe me over half a million dollars. I did not invest simply out of charity!"

Only three people had filled the small backstage office easily, seeing as any deals made in the past had never really needed bids to be placed in person. The current group of Morgana, Lancelot, and the debt collector posed caused the room to feel incredibly claustrophobic. The fact Morgana was caught having to call her partner in did little to help the building worry as well.

The last time he had been called in the investor was found months later in some ditch miles outside the city.

The only difference in this visit was that it wasn't the investor who had failed to live up to their end of the contract, but her.

"We understand that, but none of us had any idea about her going around behind our backs! We'll fix this; it's probably nothing serious. Just give us a little time," Morgana pleaded.

To her left Mordred stood silently observing the situation. His young demeanor and clean cut suit a stark contrast to the hostler on his waist. The corner of his jacket pushed back to hold the gun in plain view.

"All the same, she would rather have him than me. I'm the one offering her everything! I will make her a star and I can take her far away from here, he's just using her and I wont let you use some familial excuse to cheat me out of what's owed to me," Lancelot held to his convictions. "You know as well as anyone that he's just using her. Do them both a favor and get him to leave her for me. He can find some ten dollar slut the second she's gone anyway."

"Lance, I promise you'll get what you're owed. Just give me time to fix this!"

"I want him gone! Do you understand that? Gone! And if you don't deal with this fast I'll have to take my business up with your partner."

Mordred shifted his weight beside the desk, his hand resting on the hilt of his gun with ease. Underneath his childlike exterior there was a dangerous amount of skill at what he did. Had he wanted to he could have taken care of both Morgana and Lancelot without anyone even realizing he had been in the same room. Thankfully for them his loyalty to the theater kept him from making a move against them.

As far as Guinevere and Arthur were concerned however, they had no such protection.

"How much money have you invested so far?" Mordred asked, his calm voice quieting the others easily.

"It was at sixty thousand for Guinevere and a half a million for the show last I checked. If we moved it to a bigger theater the price would've gone even higher."

"Can we refund that money, Morgana?"

The only sound in the room was the rustling of papers as Morgana desperately tried to find some way to get out of trouble. Piles of bank statements and bills formed on her desk as she tore through everything from the start of the show.

"No… That money is locked into building sets and costumes and the technical equipment. We can only pay you back after we open." Even Morgana couldn't escape from her own business.

But she refused to sink with her ship, and Mordred knew that.

"Then it's settled. We'll get you what you are owed Mr. Du Lac. You were promised exclusivity and you will get it," Mordred said with a smile. "We'll have the distraction removed and Guinevere will only need a little coaxing to remember what's best for her."

Lancelot's rigid demeanor softened, a small smile coming across his face as he turned back to Morgana.

"For business reasons I think you should start going by your maiden name from now on. The Pendragon name isn't much help if it's heir gets himself into this kind of trouble," he advised, straightening his jacket before heading out.

Morgana nodded slowly, knowing very well she had worked too hard to build her company to just let Arthur throw a wrench in the production.

One way or another she would make sure he left her theater alone for good.

xXx

"Do you think it's cold in London this time of year? What will I tell Elyan when he comes home? How are you going to handle her without me?" Guinevere's parade of questions had been nonstop since she regained control of her senses.

The dressing room had nearly been emptied into one large suitcase with the help of Mithian. The fact there was very little placed in the room to begin with only made the job quicker. Anything that fit went into the suitcase, anything for the show was left, and any special gifts from Morgana or Lancelot found their way into the trash.

"Calm down, you're giving me a headache!" Mithian laughed, tucking the last of the clothes into the suitcase before closing it up for good. "Everything will be fine. Arthur and I have talked about this before. He'll take you back to where he lives and you can stay with him as long as you like, and if you want to leave he'll help you move out. Everyone wins!"

"Everyone?" Gwen cocked an eyebrow, sitting back on the now empty vanity.

"Yes. You and Arthur have each other, Merlin gets a new friend, and I take your role up for you." Mithian smiled faintly, folding part of a costume over in her arms carefully. "Everyone."

"…Were you always planning to take my role?" Gwen asked faintly.

Mithian's eyes dropped, her smile fading as she ran a hand over the costume delicately. The question hung in the air while she tried to find the best way to word her response. She showed no remorse over her actions, that much was certain, but the small hesitation made it clear that she knew her motives would come into question no matter what.

But she was far better trained at dealing with people than Gwen could ever have hoped to be. She wasn't about to trip over her own words when she finally spoke.

"Yes. I have. From the second Morgana told me you were my replacement I wanted you gone. Gwen, I've given up everything to be here! I know you understand what it's like up there but you haven't even seen a full audience yet." A smile returned to her face as she walked up to Gwen slowly. "It's the feeling of so many people loving you that makes all the shit Morgana drags us through worth it. I've always wanted this and I was so close to having the real thing when you showed up. Girls like you have shown up before but none of them could stick around long enough to actually have a shot."

"Then why are you being nice to me if I'm your competition?"

"Because, you reminded me of what it was like when I started. I couldn't stand seeing Morgana turn you into something like what I had become… I had a boyfriend for a while when I started, and one day he decided to pretend to be my investor to see me, but he couldn't pay. I was so doped up I couldn't stop them from getting rid of him and before I knew it he was gone. It ruined me." Gently Gwen rested a hand on top of Mithian's, tears brimming in the paler woman's eyes. "I wont let that happen to you and Arthur. I'd give anything to have someone love me like he loves you, but the theater is the closest I can get. Do you understand that?"

Slowly Gwen nodded, her hand tightening around Mithian's earnestly.

"Just make sure you save us seats for the first show you do out of a real theater, okay?" Guinevere smiled.

The second Mithian saw her smile the tears began to flow down her cheeks despite her bubbling laughter. Her perfectly applied makeup smearing as she dropped the costume to pull Gwen into a hug. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt such compassion for another dancer. She couldn't have stopped her tears if she wanted too.

For a moment the two stayed together, laughing at the change in their circumstances and at the fact they may just have beaten Morgana without causing themselves any harm. Mithian's makeup stained Gwen's shirt, Gwen's arms creased Mithian's dress, but neither of them seemed to care.

They were almost free and they still had the things they loved. It was almost too good to be true.

So naturally, it was too good to be true.

Just as quickly as their world seemed to fall back into place it shattered with a simple knock on the door. Their hug being broken in order for Mithian to clean off her face before allowing their guest in. The smile on her face dropping the second a pair of black heels crossed over into the dressing room.

A chill running through the air as a pair of leather oxfords followed suit.

Neither Morgana nor her partner looked the least bit conversational.

"Going somewhere?" she asked, pointedly eyeing the suitcase beside Gwen.

A day ago she would have backed down, apologized, remembered her place. A day ago she didn't have something to fight for and the countless amount of medication in her system wouldn't have allowed her to think properly anyway.

But with the freedom of her moment with Mithian still running through her veins, she found herself doing the thinkable.

In one simple motion she slid from the countertop, heading to pull on a jacket before going to her suitcase.

"Yes," she said as she worked the jacket on. "I'm leaving."

The shock on Morgana's face couldn't have been greater unless she had slapped her herself. She had heard all kinds of nonsense from her dancers, but never once had one dared to leave of their own volition.

Guinevere however, made it very clear she meant business.

"What are you talking about?" Morgana demanded, attempting to pull the suitcase away before it was yanked from her reach.

"I don't need you anymore!" Guinevere said, moving from her vanity to the door in one fluid motion.

Her path guarded as Mithian stood between the women, allowing Guinevere to speak for them both.

"The entire time I've been here you've treated me like I'm only worth what a man will pay for me and I'm through!" With one final tug she secured the jacket, glaring at her boss with steely resolve. "But Arthur loves me. He _loves_ me, Morgana. He. Loves. Me."

At the sound of her declaration she found herself standing taller, finding strength behind the words and with Arthur. Despite herself, she began to smile almost mercilessly back to the shocked woman.

"And that is worth everything."

Morgana was left speechless, unable to stop either woman from walking out the door. She couldn't drug someone so determined into submission. She had no more cards to play.

It was Mordred on the other hand, who could deliver the final blow.

"He'll die if you leave here," he said bluntly, freezing Guinevere in her tracks.

Her small victory fell flat underneath her feet as she turned back to look at the smaller man, her knuckles paling from the tightness of her grip on the suitcase. She could beat fight Morgana but hearing such a threat from a man she had never seen before shocked her more than she had ever thought possible. Just when she had thought she had the chance to win, there was still something stronger working against her.

And that something stronger just happened to push his jacket back enough to make the gun on his side very, painfully, visible.

"If you leave here with him, he'll have to die. No one steals nearly seven-hundred thousand without making a few important people angry," he reiterated, never once losing his calm.

"He could pay… He's a Pendragon, he wouldn't just let me go," she said weakly, trying to find a way to fight the man as effectively as she had Morgana.

But even the strongest of words died before the weakest of bullets.

"You aren't his to take. He can't just buy you from Mr. Du Lac. There is a contract in writing promising you to him exclusively. I can guarantee you it's not the money your investor is after, Pendragon money means nothing to him." As if to prove his point the man reached into his pocket, brandishing a single bullet to load his weapon. "If you leave this building with anyone but Mr. Du Lac, I'll have to make sure there is no one on any end to report missing money. That means you, Arthur, your friend and your investor would all have to be taken care of. And lets face it, who is going to miss the poor girl pretending to be a star?"

His words stung worse than anything she could remember. Mithian's resolve weakening as the man took a step forward. In a matter of seconds both women forgot about the open door and reverted their gazes back to the ground.

Mithian knew the man meant every word he said and for the life of her she couldn't speak up. He had already cost her happiness one time; she couldn't risk him taking it away again.

Even Guinevere understood the new situation. There was no way she could end up leaving without costing herself something dear. The only thing she could do was to ensure that Arthur had a chance to return to his life before they had ever met.

"He won't just leave me," she muttered, clutching the sleeves of her jacket tight, looking back to the man who stood only a few inches taller than herself.

"I know, so you'll have to make him leave," the man smiled, putting his free hand on her shoulder as if to comfort her. "Convince him you've changed your mind, that you want this life with Lancelot. Hurt him, Guinevere. Hurt him so I don't have to."

She looked away, her stomach churning the longer she felt the man's hand on her shoulder.

Every bone in her body was screaming for him to take it back, but the gun in his hand never strayed far from her line of vision. Mithian's deep brown eyes swelling with tears again as she bit back the urge to rush to Gwen's side. The faintest of nods being sent out in her place, Guinevere knew then that there was nothing she could do.

One way or another, they were both destined to wind up where they stood.

She could only hope destiny could find the mercy to allow Arthur to survive. For him to leave the theater and never know the pain having his life taken before his time.

"Hurt him, to save him."


	15. Chapter 15

The Show Must Go On

_Inside my heart is breaking, my makeup may be flaking_

_But my smile still stays on._

* * *

It had to be done.

There was no way around it every possibility ended the same. A fight would break out, the theater would be reported, and the company would be on the street. No matter what route they took there was no change. There was no avoiding it.

The only thing that she could do would be to keep from pulling her down with him.

Letting him go was terrible, but losing him would have killed her before anything else could.

She had to convince him to leave without her. One way or another he was leaving Camelot on his own. It was only a matter of how to break the news.

Without a plan or any alternatives Guinevere found herself standing out front of Arthur's flat, sans suitcase, praying that somehow the right words would come out and he would understand. She couldn't tell him the situation without him wanting to fix everything. He would be the type to think he could take on the world and win.

She wasn't going to risk losing him. It would hurt and he might hate her, but he'd be safe.

That was the only thought she allowed in her head as she knocked.

What she hadn't counted on was the look of childlike excitement beaming back to her as the door opened that managed to break her heart before she even began. At least she knew there was no way he could hate her more than she was bound to hate herself.

"There you are! I just called a friend back home, we've got two tickets out of here first thing tomorrow morning and Merlin will be flying back in the next few days after getting the rest of our stuff," Arthur said as he pulled Gwen into the flat.

He leaned in to make up for their last far to brief kiss but for the first time she turned her head, denying him a proper goodbye. Had she felt her lips on his she doubted if she would have been able to hold herself together long enough to be convincing. Having to look in his dazzling blue eyes was difficult on its own, the last thing she needed was him making it any harder.

"Where are your things anyway?" he asked, looking down to her empty hands confused.

It was now or never. It had to be done. It had to.

"I've changed my mind," she said as coolly as she could manage, all the while refusing to look him directly in the eyes. "Give the second ticket to Merlin."

Shock was the first emotion she recognized before forcing herself to look away to the rest of the flat, as if she was indifferent to any reaction he might have had. In all honesty watching him realize she had not misspoken was simply too much to bear.

"What are you talking about?" A forced laugh tried to deny what he had just heard.

"Oh come on, Arthur. I know you aren't stupid. It's no use; it's time we both accepted that. This wasn't going to work from the start so why bother pretending?" She walked passed the now stunned blonde, taking one final walk around the living room.

"Guinevere you're not making any sense." He already sounded desperate. "Just go get your things, we can go to the airport right now they'll give me some place nice to stay."

She could feel him walking up behind her, dangerously close to being able to hold onto her arms before she turned around to face him. Every bone in her body screamed to take it back but she couldn't give in. He deserved so much more than to die for some poor show girl.

"How can I make this clearer?" She paused, needing a moment to think up a strategy. "I ran into Lance when I went down and he promised me everything. Everything I've ever wanted. Even you can't do that Arthur, but he knows people and he's going to help me become a star. You're just a rich boy who can't even make a name for himself outside his father. That's all there is to it."

Stabbing him through the chest might have hurt less. His proud shoulders sank, his strong jaw clenching, a faint swelling in his eyes he was no doubt trying to hold back. He was desperately trying to keep himself together and that stung worse than if he had simply lashed out.

He was trying so hard to keep from hurting her when that was all she aimed to do. She could feel her heart breaking as she looked away, her own tears starting to threaten to fall. How she managed to find someone like him in the first place was a mystery, the fact she was being forced to let him go however, was much closer to what she felt she deserved.

"Is it the money?" he asked weakly. "How much is he buying you for? I can pay more I swear. Let me please, please Gwen don't do this." his voice broke, the tears glistening in his eyes starting to fall despite his obvious efforts to hold them back.

"You can't throw your money at this and hope something will change." She couldn't look at him, the taste of salt touching the corner of her mouth before she moved away from him to the door.

In one final attempt to stop her Arthur reached out to hold onto her arm to stop her. Guinevere pushed him away, her composure breaking for a moment at the strength of his grasp. This slip did not go unnoticed as it gave him reason to continue his attempt. He tried to pull her back but she squirmed away, he grabbed at her waist but she thrashed in his embrace, he spun her around to face him and she slapped his face.

Fast, deliberately, and hard, harder than she ever wanted to hit someone again.

For a second everything went quiet, even their tears seeming to freeze as they stared at each other in shock. A glowing red mark on the side of his cheek glaring down to her as she forced herself to recover first. She had never meant to have to hurt him physically as well, though she doubted it was the force of the hit that was what really hurt him, but it managed to get the message across.

"This is the story, Arthur. I am the headlining act, and I chose the seedy foreigner. That's the ending. I leave with him, I don't stay with you, and no one gets hurt. I don't care where you go tomorrow, but if I see you around the theater again…" her voice broke, threatening to throw off the entire performance. "Just don't bother because I'm not yours. I was never yours."

She couldn't look at him. She knew any image she could have imagined would have been nothing compared to seeing his heart breaking. Without another word or even a second glance she left the flat, pulling the door closed behind her before letting her tears flow freely.

Each step was less coordinated than the last as her vision blurred. Breathing became a challenge as she started to gasp for air. The hand she had struck him with burned as though she held it too close to a fire.

Her heart felt as though it had been torn in two, slowly, agonizingly, without any care for if she would be able to survive the sheer pain of it all.

By a miracle she made it to her floor, collapsing in the corner of the stairwell before breaking down into incoherent sobs and violent shakes. The echo of her trauma managed to reach Mithian who had been waiting by her room, drawing her to the stairwell as the only means of moving her some place truly private.

Getting her back to the apartment was a struggle but having anyone else find out a gun was being held to their heads would have been even harder. After what seemed like ages of stumbling and falling against the walls Guinevere found her way to the small couch in her apartment.

And without any protest from Mithian she took several left over pain pills to force her body to go numb for the rest of the night.

Her last thought being a fleeting memory of Arthur's hands on her to try and make her stay. It had hurt, there would be bruises in the morning, and she would try to convince herself that was reason enough to not want him back.

He was safe, she shouldn't want him back, and she was broken enough to accept a fate with Lancelot.

But now she couldn't imagine how she even deserved him.

xXx

It felt as though his chest was being crushed, a pressure and a pain he hadn't thought possible from just one person. The light bruise forming on his cheek stung as though he had been burned, for such a small hand the mark seemed incredibly large. The force of the blow hadn't even been very strong and in retrospect it wasn't even his face that hurt the most.

In only a matter of minutes he had felt the world around him shatter. He was never one to fall in love, but he had. He had fallen utterly and completely only to have it torn from him before he could even revel in it properly. The happy life he had imagined for him and Guinevere far from everything else falling apart so suddenly.

She had taken everything back without so much as a goodbye.

That alone killed him. He could have dealt with her changing her mind if it was what truly made her happy. Hell he would have forgiven Morgana and Lancelot had she told him to.

But she had played him. She played him like he knew any dancer working for Morgana would.

He had been a fool to think a pretty smile and some good nights together would change anything. He should have left the second he found out her loyalty could be bought. That was the first rule. Never fall in love with a woman who sells herself.

Yet he had broken that rule and she had broken him. He couldn't stand to even stay the night anymore. The entire flat still smelled faintly of her perfume triggering memories of their first night together and it made him sick. He had to leave.

He couldn't even be bothered to wait until morning.

In a hurt and blind rage he collected anything of immediate value, shoving it into his suitcase until there was no longer any room left. Without any care for the amount of noise he continued through the rest of the flat until he had enough to get him far from the resort. It wasn't until the door to Merlin's room opened that he even remembered to figure out a purpose for the second ticket.

"What the hell Arthur? You should be sleeping your plane isn't for hours," Merlin muttered, rubbing his eyes to see the chaos Arthur had caused. "Where's Gwen?"

Admitting everything only rubbed salt into the still open room.

"Gone. She's staying," he replied dryly. "I've been an idiot. A complete fucking idiot… Morgana can have her."

Confusion stained Merlin's face until he had completely woken up, realization quickly dawning as he hurried to block Arthur's exit. What he lacked in bulk he made up for in height. He could have managed to slow down Arthur if he needed but the sight of a bruising tear stained mark on his cheek stopped him.

Pity filled the bright blue eyes staring wearily at Arthur before the path in front of him was cleared. He had witnessed him break up with women in the past but he knew the look on Arthur's face all too well to find a way to tease him. He knew the anger was all that kept him from breaking apart.

The only difference was that when he lost Freya it was the world he had been angry with for taking her away. Guinevere had left Arthur; the blame could only rest on the two of them.

There was no way of determining who he hated more, himself or her.

"You're making a mistake," Merlin said calm, trying to stall his friend. "Please this isn't like her you know it. There has to be a reason."

"She was playing me! That's the reason! She played me and now she's going back to the other people like her!" Fresh tears began to swell in his eyes the longer he had to speak about her. He was holding together by a thread.

"Don't do this. Some things are worth fighting for you can't just—"

"Shut up Merlin! For once in your life shut up!" Arthur lashed out. It was like watching a wounded animal trying to protect itself. There was no more Merlin could do for him. "You've got your ticket. Do whatever the fuck you want with it. Throw her's in the trash. And don't you ever mention her to me again. Are we clear?"

There was no response. None was needed. In a matter of seconds Arthur left his friend alone, slamming the door behind him as he headed down to the lobby. Everything from then on went by in a blur.

A car picked him up. A man walked him through the airport. He was escorted to a waiting lounge. Somewhere a large bill was being drawn to the Pendragon name for several expensive bottles of whatever alcohol he could get his hands on. The remainder of the night was spent in the lounge, nursing a headache while avoiding any and all human contact.

The following morning his sent a text to a friend back home, having him arrange transportation before he was sent to boarding.

And as quickly as he had allowed Camelot into his life, he forced it away.

xXx

_I never meant for this to happen._

Over the course of the night Mithian had stayed watch beside Guinevere, making sure the medication didn't do any excess damage. There was no doubt in her mind Gwen would have allowed it to without question at that point but her giving up wouldn't solve anything. She had lost Arthur but there was still a reason to fight.

There had to be.

She had tasted what it was like to stand up to Morgana, to finally feel some control over her life again and it was far too sweet a feeling to give up. It might take longer than they planned and they may lose more than they wanted to but somehow they would both be free from her. They at least deserved that.

Different plans on how to try a second time ran through her head well into the morning. Guinevere's uneven breaths keeping Mithian awake through the night without any trouble. It was her fault for not finding a way around the debt collector, so taking care of his aftermath became her responsibility. And despite his being forced to leave she still had her deal to protect her for Arthur.

Though in all honesty, she needed Guinevere just as much as she needed her. Finding a way to beat Morgana would take more than just one person. She couldn't involve the company without risking someone letting it slip, and contacting the authorities could very well get them all in serious trouble regardless of who was turned in.

With Gwen virtually comatose there weren't very many options left any real help. It was only when a quick set of knocks ran through the flat that there was even any sign the rest of the world continued to spin on while theirs was falling apart.

As long as Morgana didn't feel the need to break whatever remained of the small woman's spirit there was no harm in opening the door. However, the indignant look on a long, sleep-deprived face seemed to beg to differ.

"Where is she?" he demanded, trying to look past Mithian.

"I'm sorry but aren't you supposed to have left by now?" One slender arm barred the taller man from entering. "Or is your friend sticking around to just make life harder?"

"No, he's gone I can promise you that. He couldn't leave fast enough." He sounded hurt, his expression softening. "I know something's wrong. None of this makes sense. Please just let me talk to her."

"You can't. She's out cold." Reluctantly she allowed the man into the flat, nodding towards the bedroom before letting out a tired sigh. "She had to do it Merlin. We didn't have another option."

"The hell are you talking about?"

For a moment she considered making him leave, forcing him out to protect Gwen from having Arthur return. The opportunity for outside help, however, was too good to pass up.

Having someone close to the Pendragon's without actually being a Pendragon may prove to be just as useful to them as the debt collector was to Morgana.

A tension filled the air before she sat Merlin down, carefully explaining everything that had happened on their side when they left for the suitcase. Not a detail was changed from their conversation about the future to how the only thing keeping Guinevere from breaking Morgana with her own hands was the mention of Arthur's life being on the line.

She explained how the debt collector worked. How his loyalty to Morgana and the theater trumped any qualms he had with the acts he committed in order to ensure their safety. Mordred was not an evil man by nature, and many of the dancers enjoyed having him come around, but there was no mistaking what he was capable of if he saw a threat. And Guinevere losing Lancelot had certainly become a threat.

"So it was forcing him to leave or risk us all being killed. She didn't want to do it but there was no other choice!" At the sounds of Gwen stirring in the other room Mithian lowered her voice. "You have to understand this is hurting her just as bad, if not worse, than it's hurting Arthur. But he can't interfere. We have until opening night to find a way to get her away from here or she's stuck with whatever the investor wants."

The man's face seemed to have grown wearier as the story progressed, the weight of both of his friend's sufferings pressing down on him hard. He took his time to recover, allowing his mind to process the new information as best it could.

When he finally decided to speak his eyes seemed fixated on the bedroom door, Guinevere's jagged breathing barely loud enough to be heard from where they sat.

"She's letting him make a huge mistake."

"She's saving his life. We have to figure out how to save hers."

Merlin's eyes left the door, locking themselves on Mithian's with a steely resolve she couldn't help but admire. No matter how foolish it may have been. "We bring him back. We make sure he's back on opening night so Morgana can't make a huge scene."

Mithian scoffed, knowing very well romantic ideas of forgiveness and grand rescues were not things people in their line of work were granted. "If you can get him to come back that's still cutting it too close. We need a better plan for when that one backfires."

"Do you have one?" he snapped, standing up from the couch to rummage through his pockets.

"Well," she muttered, caught slightly off guard. "No…"

"Then I'll see what I can do. His plane should land in a few hours so he could be back here on opening night if we catch him in time." Frantically he started to dial his friend's number, his eyes darting to the bottle of pills resting on the coffee table.

Worry flashed across his face as he shot an accusatory glare towards Mithian, a protest hanging on the tip of his tongue before she pocketed the pills, cutting him off with ease.

"They were just to help her calm down. A few of these and some pain pills and she was out like a light. It wont hurt her if this is the only time she does it. I've taken far more and lived. They'll make you pass out once the high wears off, people thought I OD'd dozens of times cause of that." An idea sparked as Merlin turned his attention to the sound of Arthur's answering machine, distaste still evident on his face.

Plan B had just presented it's self, and though it was just as, if not more risky than Merlin's plan, it offered one thing his didn't. If she could pull it off correctly there wasn't even the slightest chance Morgana would bother Guinevere again.

If she was under the impression something had beaten Mordred to the punch there would be no further need for his services. And with Morgana being the supplier removing her from the picture would be even simpler.

The only issue was in finding out where the line between faking an overdose and actually causing one lay.

Of course if Merlin's plan failed it may not even matter.

With opening night a little over a week away there was no think about the risks. If they lost they'd all risk dying, if they won then maybe, just maybe things would turn around.

One way or another it was bound to be a show none of them would ever forget. If they managed to live past curtain call, that is.


	16. Chapter 16

In Positions

_I just came to say, goodbye love, goodbye love_

_Goodbye._

* * *

"We started having to make excuses for you at the office. Even I was starting to get jumpy that you'd run away or something!"

No word came from the back seat, Arthur's eyes fixed pointedly on the trails of rain running down the window as he was driven back from the airport.

"Of course I knew you wouldn't run off without Merlin, and as long as he didn't get too jumpy over the phone you had to be coming back sometime. Though I thought he'd be coming back with you now. What happened? Lover's quarrel?"

The words stung to even think about. "Something like that," he muttered in reply. "Merlin will be back in a week or two."

Rain continued pouring down on the city around them. Of course there never seemed to be a day without rain before he left. Though in this instance the rain felt as though it was solely for him and his misery. As if a man who could not hold onto the woman he loved could somehow find a way to bend the weather to his mood.

Yet that seemed more possible at the moment than any chances of him recovering, so he might as well wish for it to rain until the world drowned him.

"You alright back there? I've seen you and him fight but it's normally more 'I should break his nose!' instead of pensive moping." The eyes of his friend glancing back to him through the back seat mirror, worry obvious even behind stray strands of his curly hair.

A partner in his father's business for what seemed like ages Leon was one of the few people aside from Merlin adequately acquainted with the many moods of Arthur Pendragon, but very rarely did he mention them. They were mates, the most comfort they ever offered the other was a beer and a slap on the shoulder. For him to bring up the issue meant he must have looked even more of a mess than he already thought.

Wonderful.

"It wasn't as restful a vacation as Merlin had promised." He couldn't talk about her, it hurt far too much. "Morgana's still got the same people around here. Not a respectable person for miles."

Leon was quiet, allowing time for the conversation to fade off before changing the topic, deciding instead to catch him up with the latest gossip from work and recent sports highlights. As hard as he tried there was no undoing what damage had been done. They could only ride back to his home in silence with the hopes that things could return to normal without mentioning the problem.

But the dozen or so missed calls from Merlin proved otherwise.

Countless voicemails regaled Arthur with plea after plea for him to return, different explanations as to why she wasn't heartless, and finally a weak 'we need you here' before his box was empty. Not a single call came from the woman in question. Whatever 'we' was being spoken about wasn't any group that seemed to think it necessary to reach out to him as well.

The following days proved no different. Merlin attempted to call when he knew he'd be heading to work, eating lunch with Leon, or just before he lay down in the hopes of falling asleep. Not once was the phone answered and not once did he manage a peaceful sleep. Each night, right after listening to whatever pitiful message Merlin left, Arthur found himself staring up to the ceiling in order to avoid glancing out the large bay window.

Accidentally he couldn't help but steal a glance out across the rainy cityscape below him. Thoughts of how he had planned to sit with her comfortably tucked against his chest like they had the first night she spent with him rushed through his head before he had the power to stop them. Before the idea seemed absolutely idyllic, but now it only managed to keep him awake well into early morning. His heart ached far too much for him to even imagine the possibility of sleep.

Or the chance that dreams of her would only deepen the wound in his chest.

His return to work was appreciated, though his mental absence could not be ignored. Even his father begun to recognize when he had allowed his mind to drift in the middle of a meeting; though after one shake of the head from Leon no one mentioned whenever it would occur. No one wanted to risk making the situation worse, and deep down they all hoped it would fade away once he fully adjusted to being back home. But it never did.

And despite himself Arthur doubted it ever would.

"You know," Leon said, finally breaking the silence on the third day. "Maybe going out to see a good game would help clear your head."

Papers for the next day's meeting lay on the desk in front of him as a gift from his father. A new project to attempt to push him back into the swing of things before the mental absence began to harm the business.

"I don't think that'd be much help. I'd rather avoid anyone outside of here for as long as I can." He began to sift through the pile; his hands lingering over the projected earnings of his recently departed vacation stay. A print out of her advertisement stapled to the backside along with a list of the theaters earnings.

His laps in judgment noticed by Leon, the paper finding itself changing hands before he could place it back down on the table. Arthur reached to pull it back out of instinct, only catching himself when the standing man raised an eyebrow under his mop of curly hair.

"I'm just giving it a look," he reassured, scanning the page before realizing it's importance. His eyes resting over the advertisement for a moment longer than simple curiosity deemed appropriate. "Morgana's got a new girl?"

Arthur nodded, his jaw clenched tight as he attempted to turn his attention back to the other papers.

"Guinevere… That's a pretty name."

The papers in his hand started to tremble before he put them back down.

"A bit of a mouthful really," he said, straining to keep his voice calm.

"I like it. She's pretty cute too. No wonder she's getting such a big hype. Agravaine called to tell us they planned to buy out your father's portion of their company once she's done," Leon continued unaware of Arthur's distress. "If she's good enough to get them that much I may have to see about going out there to watch the show. Plus meeting her in person might be worth it too."

It felt as though a knife was being jammed into his chest, breathing suddenly became difficult, and his vision began to blur. He could barely keep himself together.

"She wouldn't bother with seeing you. The only chance you have of even getting her to look at you is to pay her off like some street whore. Trust me the last thing you want to do is get anywhere near that girl!" The words pored out quicker than he had time to consider what it was he had said; though once he had spoken he automatically wished he could take it all back.

He meant none of it. Or all. He wasn't sure. All he knew was that he would have given every cent he had to have her back.

The outburst was noted as Leon returned the paper to the table, the pieces slowly fitting together as he watched Arthur's attempt to recover. There were only a handful of times Arthur had been truly heartbroken. The signs were now too obvious to ignore.

"But you did, didn't you?" The question didn't ask for an answer. "Is she why you came back early?"

"I don't want to talk about it. There's nothing to say." Leon wasn't buying it. "I was an idiot alright? That's it!"

Calmly Leon moved over to sit across from Arthur, pushing the papers out of the way to keep from giving him any distractions. The only thing left between them being her smiling face on the glossy advertisement. Her name printed in bold under the show's title.

"You loved her." He didn't need to ask but hearing it aloud shook him too hard to even try to deny it. "No one over here made you come back, so why did you? Did she not love you back?"

The question asked as gently as it could but Arthur could still feel himself slowly starting to fall apart. Memories of her laugh, her smile, the way her eyebrows furrowed when he kissed her forehead while she tried to sleep, everything came rushing back. There was no doubt in his mind that she loved him then. She had to.

He needed her to.

And yet her choice hadn't been him. She had returned to Morgana and that damned investor despite anything they might have had together or that he hoped for in the future.

"No," he said quietly. "She was just a damn good actress."

"Then why are you acting like there was something more? You aren't the kind of guy to fall for someone who didn't love them back. I've been around to hear you brag about women you've been with and even the good ones haven't left you this messed up."

Arthur was quiet, his eyes fixed on the advertisement staring up towards him. Even on print she still managed to look just passed him.

"She wanted me to leave. She… she picked someone else who could pay her price better than I could. I couldn't stay after that. I just couldn't," he spoke slowly as it hurt to get the words out. "Merlin's sticking it out until the show opens then he'll be coming back. I haven't taken a single one of his calls since I got back. They're all the same thing."

"What thing?"

"He says I have to come back."

xXx

Every piece of technical equipment was accounted for. Even Vivian managed to learn each step and squeeze into each costume. From the outside the show was more than ready for opening night. Backstage however, the now puking Guinevere could barely pull through for a drink, much less an entire number.

"I told you not to give her so many pills! We still have time to fix this!"

"I didn't give them to her this time, she found them!"

"How the hell could she have found them? I had Percival put them somewhere even I couldn't reach!"

The bickering continued, muffled out by the dressing room doors. None of the other dancers seemed to notice Mithian and Merlin spending quite a fair bit of time in Gwen's dressing room, or they just didn't bother to mention it. In the end the only thing that mattered was that she could perform long enough to get them all on and off stage without having the debt collector on their backs.

A task much easier said than done.

"Stop yelling," she said hoarsely, the back of her throat burning. "I had him get them down. Nothing else helps."

Slowly the attention of her caretakers turned away from each other and back to the frail girl kneeling beside the sink. Gently they pulled her up from the ground and back to the seat in front of the vanity. With great care Mithian helped her clean up in an attempt to hide her disheveled state.

Merlin could only stand back and watch as his friend withered away before his very eyes, the loss and the stress of her position weighing down to more than any person could bear. And he still couldn't get Arthur to so much as answer the phone.

"At least they haven't spoken to you since then," he said quietly. "It's a lot easier without them snooping around."

"I don't care, Merlin… Lancelot still expects me to play nice," she said between sips of a soda meant to sooth her stomach. "At least the man would make him jumpy."

"Has he tried anything again?"

"No. We only meet at rehearsals. Mithian gave him some 'resting for the opening' shit. He bought it though so I can't complain." The weight on her shoulders seemed to push her further down in her seat, the layers of makeup barely able to hide the puffiness around her eyes. "At least I look the part."

Merlin's heart sank. He should be helping her move into Arthur's place or at least be more useful than just standing around watching her suffer. Of the first time in his life there was nothing he could immediately do fix a situation he had a hand in causing.

"Mithian, can you take her up to her room? I'm going to make a phone call. I'll be up there in a second."

Already knowing who the phone call was going to go out to neither Guinevere nor Mithian attempted to change his mind. With an arm wrapped around the frailer woman's shoulders Mithian helped her up from the vanity, walking her out of the dressing room before any of the other dancers could see how weak she was growing.

There was no doubt in Merlin's mind that faking an overdose may prove too much for her body. She had already pulled herself through the home cocktail of medication to just get through the week and even Morgana began to wonder if she was making herself sick on purpose.

And at this point Merlin couldn't bring himself to rule out that possibility.

For the second time that day, he prepared himself for Arthur's voicemail message. His number still got through so there was at least the chance his messages were being heard.

"_You've reached Arthur Pendragon, leave a message and I'll try to get back to you."_

_ Of course you'll only try if you aren't playing victim._ "Arthur. It's me. Again. Listen I know you're getting these messages I just…" he paused. The usual strategy of begging hadn't gotten him anywhere so far and they were nearly out of time.

If he had to play dirty then so be it.

"I just think you should know Guinevere's getting sick. Really sick. We're trying to keep her in one piece but there's only so much we can do. I'm sure that Lance guy will take her to a doctor after the show but we wont get to go with her then. If you have anything you want to say to her I'd get it in before she's gone for good."

The sound of static came through the opposite end of the phone as it usually did until the faintest sound of something moving followed.

_You're screening my call… You sneaky bastard._

"She's given up on you coming back, but I still have a ticket to opening if you feel like coming. I'm going to be backstage with her anyway," Merlin paused giving the offer time to sink in. "I'm not going to try and fix anything between you two because honestly she deserves better than someone who just gives up. I'll be back after opening night."

The background noise continued until Merlin hung up completely satisfied that his message had gotten through for once. He could only hope Arthur would take the bait so he wouldn't have to worry about resorting to plan B.

xXx

Both Leon and Arthur sat in shock, starting down at the now silent phone lying on the desk between them. When they had seen Merlin calling the initial reaction had been to ignore it. Leon however, was too intrigued after their recent conversation to just let the call go unanswered.

It had been his idea to screen it. Though there had been nothing preparing either of them for the news.

Once her name had been mentioned he was lost for good.

"Buddy? Say something."

_'Guinevere is sick…given up on you…deserves better'_ Arthur's mind was racing too quickly to even hear his friend's question as he pulled himself up from behind the desk.

"The hell does he think he's doing? I'm the one who gave up! Me? He's completely insane! She was the one who made me leave without her. She made me go! I didn't just give up she wanted me gone!" Fuming he shoved the phone back into his pocket, pacing around his office agitated. "Do you know what she said to me? She said there was no use in 'pretending' that she chose her sleazy investor over me. And then she hit me. There is nothing there about a woman who deservers any better than where she's going I can promise you that!"

Unaffected Leon simply watched as he paced the room, the advertisement sitting on his lap the entire time.

"So either she's a bird with a broken wing or some whore looking for a quick buck. Those two always go hand in hand," he said coolly.

"Oh come off it you can't actually believe him. It's _Merlin_. He thought Morgana was a good person for years!"

"We all did Arthur, his judgment isn't any worse than ours. The difference between you and Merlin is when you're hurt you try to lash out at other people. He only blames himself." Leon stood, handing over the advertisement face up. "But if you're as completely done with this as you sound like you are throw her away."

"What is that supposed to—"

"Do it. No one here can just fly out to catch a show so we don't need it. Get rid of it."

Arthur froze, the scared anger slowly starting to fade away as he tried to convince himself to dispose of the page. It should have been so easy, just one quick balling up followed by a well-aimed toss into the wastebasket. Yet the longer he stared down at Guinevere's innocent smile the harder it became to let the paper go.

His hands began to tremble as he handed the paper back to Leon carefully, attempting to seem indifferent to the challenge.

The paper was never retrieved, being left in Arthurs extended hand as his friend went back to the desk.

"You still love her."

"She broke my heart," he finally admitted, feeling sick to his stomach the moment he heard the words out loud.

"Obviously. But just because she broke your heart doesn't mean you've stopped loving her. You can't even through away her picture Arthur, you can't just pretend like she doesn't matter anymore." Sympathy filled his friend's eyes before he turned his attention to the computer, booting the system back up as quickly as he could manage.

Arthur knew what he planned to do but even as he folded the advertisement carefully to fit into his pocket he couldn't reason an excuse to return. She wanted him gone. That much was certain. There was no way he would even be allowed into the theater after they were found out anyway.

"You like window seats right?" Leon asked, browsing through flight schedules with ease.

"I can't go back there," he replied weakly. "Even if I wanted to. She wouldn't want to see me."

Leon sighed, turning from the computer back to face Arthur. For once the difference in their ages became blatantly clear as the curly headed man looked up. Small lines crossing his forehead, countless days spent working without sleep showing up in the way he held himself.

But he still seemed to be holding himself together far better than the younger man was currently.

"Then don't go to see her. Go to see the show, or even to see Merlin. Morgana can't turn away a paying customer and if you happen to wander backstage for our scrawny little friend then so be it. But you are going back," he affirmed, returning to the booking website. "At least go to figure out why she changed her mind so quickly. No one just turns on someone out of no where."

There was no reply, but there was also no protest. The possibility of facing her again seemed even more terrifying than facing an entire army. At least when an army would kill him quickly, Guinevere would show him no such mercy.

Though if anything Merlin had been preaching was true he didn't disserve any.

Leon was right though, he would never be able to get over her until he knew how she could walk away from him so quickly. He had to return to Camelot.

One last time.


	17. Chapter 17

Satine Act 1

_I could have loved you but you had the hunger for a life in the lights._

_I couldn't compete with the spell you were under._

* * *

_The curtain rose, blindingly bright lights cast down on an empty stage. Slowly dancers began to move like clockwork, filling up the empty space with their own stories and actions. The spotlight however, was fixed on two stationary points. The silhouette of a woman held up on a black platform without any visible way down._

_ And a man, kept from the platform by the sea of dancers._

_ "I thought I was hopeless," he felt himself singing. "I thought I was broken."_

_ Slowly he began to move through the sea of dancers, a small path allowing him to look up to the platform without any obstruction._

_ "I waited in the cold, but the door wouldn't open 'til I." He took a step down the path. " 'Til I heard your voice in a dream."_

_ Before he could move any farther the hands of stronger dancers rested themselves on his shoulder, pushing him back as the path was closed. What had been a clam group of people was now a hostile clash of male and female dancers alike, pushing and pulling him farther away from the platform. The hands of one man matching his height turned him around, leaving his back towards the woman._

_ The two circled each other for a moment before being pulled away, the reflection getting tossed back as he was tossed forward. It seemed as though the dancers had yet to make up their minds over whether or not he'd be allowed to pass._

_ For just a moment he had a clear view of the woman. The chances of having another opportunity were slim, so his next words were belted out with as much strength as he could muster._

_ "So sing to me and I will forgive you for taking my heart in the suitcase you packed!" The dancers began to try to push him away, despite his best efforts to never lose sight of the platform. "Sing to me like the lights didn't blind you!" A stronger man's hand pushed at his chest, sending him backwards. "Like you blinded me!" A woman cupped his face, hooking her leg around his to spin him away. His words now only for himself. "When I heard your voice in a dream."_

_ The woman on the platform turned down to face him, her expression covered by the shadow cast from the spotlight. A single arm extended to him before the hoard of dancers pulled him back to the opposite end of the stage._

_ Slowly he began to fight against their shoving, working his hardest to move himself in the opposite direction. Hands gripped his shoulder before he broke free. Female dancers blocked his path, throwing themselves at him to slow him down or barricading the route with their bodies. Yet he pressed on._

_ "Sing to me like the lights didn't blind you!" The dancers surrounded him, pushing him down towards the floor._

_ "I thought I could love you but you had the hunger." He fought his way past the dancers, never once taking his eyes off the platform._

_"Oh nothing comes easy when everyone's rushing." The dancers lifted him for a moment before he escaped their grasp, running up to the platform to make up for lost space._

_He could feel his voice straining to belt out whatever piece of the song he remembered. The only thought in his head was to make the woman turn down to look at him. He needed to see her face. He needed her._

_Slowly as he got closer to the platform new dancers appeared, helping him make his way towards her as quickly as he could._

_"I thought I could love you."_

_The dancers helped him climb the platform. The hands of one woman guiding him the final steps until he had reached the top. For the first time since the lights went up he could see the woman on the platform's face. Her eyes locked onto his as their spotlights mixed, ridding her caramel skin of any shadows._

_"I thought I could love you," he said in one final breath reaching out to touch her face._

_"Arthur…"_

"Arthur. Come on, the plane just landed. We're here." To his left Leon sat rather disheveled, bags forming under his eyes from a lack of sleep.

He was a far cry from the sweet face he had just been staring at. For a moment he believed he could close his eyes and have her back. The glimmer of hope fading from his face as soon as he came back to his senses, feeling the stale air of the cabin around him along with the soft cushions of their first class accommodations.

A frown crossed Leon's tired face as he realized what kind of dream he must have just interrupted. Sympathy came next, before he ultimately surrendered to how tired he was.

"Just make it to the resort. Merlin says he still has your old suite so we can go stay there before the show. He said he'd try to get you back stage but he couldn't tell me anything else before we were out of range. Something weird sounded like it was going on though."

Slowly they began to gather their things, heading out of the plane to their boarding terminal. A driver ushered them away as quickly as they were spotted. There was no need for them to waist any time. They had come for one reason and one reason alone.

"What was going on?" he asked, putting his own bag into the car.

"I'm not entirely sure," Leon yawned. "But I think I heard someone throwing up. And I know for a fact Merlin kept trying to argue with someone. She sounded pretty bossy too."

"Morgana?"

"Nah, I know her voice. This girl was new. I didn't pay too much attention to it though. They just kept arguing about pills and you, something about a plan. I'll remember more once I've gotten some rest." A shiver went down Arthur's spine. "You were out right after the lady offered us drinks though. So I couldn't just tell you then."

He didn't need to be told. He knew exactly who was being argued over. Though the mention of pills scared him more than he cared to admit, as long as Merlin was around her there was a chance he could fix his mistake.

By the sound of things, it seemed as though he would only have one chance to anyway.

As long as Guinevere would speak to him he knew forgiving her would come almost too easily. The problem was in getting to her in the first place.

xXx

"Someone sent you a gift." Mithian stated, eyeing a vase full of extravagantly prepared roses set on the side of the dressing room vanity.

Dozens of costumes lay around by order of when they were needed. Glittering crystals and transparent scraps of fabric coloring the remainder of the room into a much more cheerful atmosphere than the mood deemed appropriate. It was as if the world around them seemed completely oblivious to the situation it had put them in. Or that it simply did not care.

It certainly felt as if it didn't.

"Mordred dropped them off," Guinevere said, carefully applying her lipstick. "That and a nice reminder about how lucky I am to be here. And how thankful I should be to Morgana and Lancelot."

"How did he seem?"

Guinevere paused, taking a moment to clean up the edges of her lips before moving on to her eyes. The brush in her hand shaking slightly before she could steady herself.

"Like he had no idea what he was doing… I think he honestly believes whatever Morgana has told him. Which makes him even worse to have around." With several careful strokes she finished one eye, giving herself a strikingly different appearance than the sweet girl she was known to be without the makeup. "He wouldn't have had a problem keeping with his threat."

Mithian nodded, moving to the vanity to help finish her hair. Dozens of carefully pinned up curls were released, framing Guinevere's face before she began the task of arranging them properly. On stage she would rival any old Hollywood starlet. In the dressing room though, there was no hiding her obvious distress.

"Any word from Merlin?" she asked, allowing Mithian to maneuver her head however she needed.

"No… He left a little while ago and I doubt he'll be allowed back in any time soon. Mordred keeps a close eye on who comes backstage." Gwen's face fell. "We both knew the chances of his plan working were slim to none. You did what you had to. It's safer this way."

Though there was no doubt in her mind Mithian was right, she wished to be wrong. Poor broken Guinevere was a sight worse than anything she had experienced in all her years with the company.

For the first time she saw what she must have looked like when Morgana broke her. She saw exactly what she had decided to try and prevent and still managed to fail.

The only hope either of them had was the off chance plan B turned out to work. Yet neither of them had mentioned how there would be no second chance if it didn't.

If they were going to lose to Morgana they had at least decided it would be on their terms.

"I know," Gwen muttered, lowering her eyes to glance at her opening costume. "Should I take the pills now or during intermission?"

"Take some now to keep you running, we'll finish it off at intermission. You just have to hold through until curtain call. Then Percival will get you and you and I will take his car somewhere safe until we get a way out of here." Mithian pinned one last decoration into her hair before holding onto the smaller woman's shoulders. "One way or another we're getting out of here."

Guinevere's eyes never rose from her lap. The pills on her vanity remaining untouched until a knock came from the door announcing that the time had come for them to get into place. While Mithian responded, several of the pills had vanished. Guinevere's eyes closed tight as she forced herself to swallow.

"One way or another, we'll remind them we're not theirs. Just hold through until curtain call."

With one deep breath Guinevere rose from her seat, her demeanor easily changing into her characters once the pills began to take affect. A hallow smile painted expertly across her lips.

"There's nothing more than can do to hurt me. I can at least make sure they wont forget me. I'll give them their ended. Exactly like they wanted."

xXx

The lights dimmed throughout the theater's lobby three consecutive times, leaving Arthur standing in the marble hallway entirely on his own. Leon was too tried to follow him by the time they had unpacked and Merlin had yet to show up after he had announced his arrival.

Dozens of people past by, playbills in hand, eagerly awaiting Guinevere's debut. From the look of the advertisements placed throughout the resort it was one of the more exciting events they had to offer. Morgana was bleeding her thin before the show had even began.

Somehow the realization only made him feel worse about himself for leaving her alone. And as fate would have it he was now the one left alone.

It would have hurt less if he could just find his way inside the theater to see her. The poster resting against the wall was a far cry from the original, the original wouldn't have stayed silent for so long. At this point he'd be happier even if she were only yelling at him. Anything was better than nothing.

"You actually showed up…" A voice from the back door startled Arthur, causing him to lose his train of thought automatically.

"Merlin... I don't… I'm not here to apologize for leaving," he said with less resolve than he had hoped.

His friend's face on the other hand was far cry from sympathetic. If he hadn't known him better he might have expected him to want to hurt him. Arthur knew however, that the look was simply reserved for the few moments when he felt exceedingly disappointed with him.

Merlin's current expression was the most disappointed he could ever remember his usually optimistic friend being.

"I don't care why you're back. I just need you to stay a little longer this time." Worry lines aged his friend greatly, his cheerful grin nowhere to be seen. "We can't go backstage until intermission, you think you can stick around that long?"

"She made me leave. Has she been telling you something else?"

"No you asshole. I'm not going to tell you what she needs to, but you can be damn sure she's never done a damn thing to hurt you if she could help it," he said, practically biting out his words.

Arthur wanted to argue, say something in defense of himself, but was cut off by the lights dimming one final time. Merlin didn't speak once the lobby went dark and instead gave him the single opportunity to follow him into the theater, flashing two tickets easily in order to get them through. Where he managed to get them from he couldn't be sure.

They were seated in the back of the mezzanine, looking down at the stage with ease. The velvet curtains opening slightly to allow Morgana to give a quick speech. She practically glowed under the spotlight. No one in the audience had even the slightest idea as to what she was willing to do to stand where she stood.

Merlin's eyes automatically locked themselves onto the dancers as the curtain rose, scanning over certain people before fixing himself on Mithian. The glance was not affectionate in the least but more of a look of worry. Something was going on with the two Arthur wasn't being told.

But before he could think about it further she made her entrance and the world seemed to stop.

Even from so far away he doubted he had seen her more beautiful before. No. No he had. Waking up beside her in the morning, having her smile meant just for him. As beautiful as she was he could tell the smile she had one was far from the same one he had loved so much. This smile seemed almost forced.

He didn't need to think long before he realized he was one of the main causes.

The musical continued as he leaned forward to try for a better view. Guinevere sang, stealing the hearts of every single person in the audience before the second scene. Her character flitted around, starting a doomed romance with the owner of her club as they sang the song Arthur had once hoped was meant for him.

Their romance built up until the gangster was introduced and unlike in the version he knew before he left, he managed to sweep Guinevere off her feet with incredible ease. The two male leads would face off, forcing Guinevere to choose. She spent her time with both, finding nothing appealing in the poorer man. Though the story tried to paint it as a noble action based off a deep romance there was no doubt in his mind that had been Lancelot's doing.

Suddenly he felt sick to his stomach knowing he had left the two alone at all.

By the time he pushed himself back to watching the show Guinevere and the gangster had decided to run off together, sharing a new number having something to do with it being them against the world that seceded in making the feeling even worse. Curtains fell for intermission with her in his arms, the smile on her face fading ever so slightly before they disappeared from view.

People around them began to stand, talking amongst themselves about what they thought of the show. Merlin, however, seemed to be pushing Arthur out of their row as quickly as possible without so much as a word.

"What are you doing?" Arthur hissed, going wherever he was instructed.

"You're only going to have a few minutes to talk to her. Make it count," he said, ushering him behind a small door at the side of the theater, leading him down a hallway barely big enough for the two of them. "Her dressing room is the first one on the right. If anyone knocks that you don't know hide. We could get in huge trouble for being back here."

He left no room for argument, pushing and shoving Arthur down the hallway as if he was worried they were being followed. Dancers passed them without any acknowledgment of their intrusion, all too busy getting ready for the next act to care. Merlin however, stayed on high alert before letting the larger man go, ushering him to the dressing room on his own.

For a moment he froze not knowing whether to knock or simply just walk in. He couldn't think of what he wanted to say or what to expect when he saw her. For the first time in ages the only thing he felt was afraid. Terribly afraid of being hurt again, but even more afraid of pushing her further away.

Without realizing what he was doing he opened the door, walking into the dressing room unannounced, closing the door behind him quietly. He seemed to move without thinking, walking over towards the vanity where he could see Guinevere sitting, her eyes closed as she swallowed something she had eaten before he walked in.

The black curls he loved so much were pulled to one side of her face, falling across her back and shoulder in elegant waves. The skimpy costume glittering under the vanity's lights, practically making her warm skin glow. All he had to do was step forward and reach out and he could have touched her bare shoulder yet he managed to at least hold himself back, waiting for acknowledgment before even bothering to speak.

"Did you bring that water I asked for? I already took them so it's kind of pointless but I'm still parched." She spoke before raising her head, her brown eyes going wide when she saw his reflection in her mirror. For a half of a second they seemed to spark before she regained composure. Of course it may have just been the lights. "What are you doing here?" her voice barely managed to come out.

She sounded so different from how he remembered her. She sounded colder, tired, and most of all she sounded broken. So much more broken than even he was. And he knew that.

_Guinevere's really sick_. He remembered Merlin saying, his stomach sinking even further. How could he have left her?

Why did he ever think he could stop loving her?

"I needed to see you," he said plainly, finding it incredibly difficult to build a proper sentence.

"You shouldn't be here." She stood, holding onto her chair tight to balance herself. "You need to leave now."

"Not before you tell me why you made me go," he replied, not moving an inch.

The strain on her body became visible as her arm began to tremble before she straightened herself out. She stood before him regal despite her broken pride. Her makeup hiding her exhaustion better than anything else could have managed to.

"No. I told you all you needed to hear," she said with resolve, walking past him to finish putting on her costume. "Just go."

Her casual dismissal of him stung more than he wanted it to. He already had lost control of his actions. Having his mouth follow suit was regretfully too expectable.

"Then let me pay my bill." Guinevere froze for a moment before finishing preparing herself, heading out of the dressing room only to have him follow her. "You made me believed you loved me, so why shouldn't I pay my debt? Just like your investor right?"

Whether or not his words stung her he couldn't tell. He reached out to slow her, finding her resistance to be far weaker than when he had tried to stop her before. Though her withering away before his eyes wasn't exactly reassuring that the lack of an attempt to push him away was a sign that she wanted him back.

"Please, just go," she said, refusing to look him in the eyes as she tried to hurry out towards the stage entrance.

Arthur followed suit, desperately trying to get a response from her. "Oh but you did your job so incredibly well. Why shouldn't I pay you like he has been?" He could hear his voice rising, unable to stop himself even as the other dancers began to spot them.

Guinevere continued to try and escape him, her body betraying her as she needed to slow to catch her breath multiple times, the black eyeliner beginning to smudge as she fought back tears. All the while refusing to look at him.

"Don't… don't there's no point," she muttered, holding onto the railing near the stage door tightly. "Just leave."

He moved closer and she began to run again, going through the doors to the space behind the curtain, attempting to lose him in the maze of props and finished set pieces. Finding it increasingly harder to keep up speed as she went.

Arthur caught up to her easily, reaching out to her hand in order to pull her back; unaware of where they had stopped. She had lost all strength to pull away, turning to face him against her better judgment, the tears starting to fall despite her best efforts. She still refused to look him in the eyes.

Her face instead became glued at a point behind him as shock began to wash over her face. Her hands gripping Arthur's shoulders tightly, attempting to move him out of the way.

Unbeknownst to him the commotion had alerted one of the dancers to tell Morgana about their visitor, who quickly sent out her right hand man to deal with the issue. While Arthur desperately tried to get Guinevere to speak with him the man in charged with keeping everything in order now stood, gun in hand, mere feet behind the couple.

"No," she whispered, gripping his shoulders tighter, tears streaming down her face. "Get out of here please, go! Go!"

"Let me pay! Let me pay or tell me you don't love me!" Completely at a loss Arthur gripped for the last gimmick he could think of. Unaware of the man behind him or of the rising curtain they stood behind.

Without any means of moving him Guinevere began to plead for him to leave, trying to move herself into Mordred's line of range. Her tears flowed to hard for her to speak properly, reduced to shoving and shaking her head. The light from the stage seeping across the floor along with Gwaine's voice cueing her entrance as both Arthur and Mordred continued unaware.

"Then tell me you don't love me!" Arthur nearly yelled, keeping Guinevere from moving away from him.

But before she could croak out a response the curtains had risen completely, leaving them both on stage in the midst of their argument.

The entire theater fell silent save to the sound of a wine glass falling to the floor. Unmistakably coming from the investor's table.


	18. Chapter 18

Satine Act 2

_I will love you until my dying day_

* * *

Not a word was spoken throughout the entire theater. Blank faces of confused audience members barely became visible when the stage lights shifted off the open platform down to Gwaine's equally confused face. Not a single member of the cast moved, stunned into silence by the stranger on their stage.

Guinevere's tears stained her cheeks, makeup trailing down in streams of black eyeliner and rouge. Her hands on Arthur's wrists shook, her eyes locked onto Gwaine, pleading for him to do something. Just off stage she could see Mordred lowering his gun as even he couldn't handle a theater full of witnesses, yet the issue of how to get off stage in one piece still hung in the air.

A single cough from the audience pulled the remainder of the cast back to the performance as they all scrambled for a means of covering the new addition. Thankfully, with Percival standing offstage in a wing, there was one empty position that needed filling.

"You—you think this disguise fools me?" Gwaine spoke out to the audience, doing his best to remain in character. "A cheap wig and new shoes couldn't fool anyone!"

Slowly the audience seemed to accept the new circumstances, though silhouettes from the investors table seemed to squirm uncomfortably the longer Arthur stood onstage.

"This woman is mine," Gwaine continued, sneaking a concerned glance to Guinevere as he headed up to the platform. To both his and Guinevere's surprise however, it was Arthur who moved away first.

It was not their sudden appearance on stage that seemed to throw Arthur. No his focus was on, and forever would be on, Guinevere. Her inability to answer his question had proved enough. He didn't have to hear her say she never loved him. As far as he was concerned the fact she couldn't admit to even having loved him in the past was an answer enough.

"Save your breath. She's yours now," he said coldly, digging around in his pocket for whatever cash he had, throwing at her feet before stepping off the platform. The pain in his eyes evident to the entire theater. "I've paid my whore…"

Guinevere's heartbeat froze, the words piercing her chest stronger than bullet could ever have managed. The second she was left alone on the platform her body gave way, allowing her to fall to her knees, covering her mouth in an attempt to hold back her sobs. Her eyes blurring Arthur's familiar outline as he walked downstage.

"I owe you nothing," he continued, his voice dangerously calm. "And… and you are nothing to me anymore."

A sob escaped her clenched fist. Her body collapsing onto itself as much as her costume would allow. She wished the gun had gone off and given her some salvation from the torture on stage. She wished she could bring herself to look him in the eyes.

By the time she managed to raise her head Arthur had already taken her delayed response as another reaffirmation of her lack of caring. Blinded by his own pain he couldn't have seen hers even if he tried.

"Arthur," she managed, her voice difficult to hear despite the microphones around the stage.

At the sound of his name his entire body visibly clenched, forcing himself to turn his back to the withered shell of the woman he loved. Tears staining his cheek despite himself.

"Thank you," he replied just as quietly. "Thank you for curing me of this damned obsession with loving you."

Neither could bring themselves to speak any longer as the spotlight began to follow Arthur offstage. The entire cast shifted their positions, allowing him into the audience to make his exit. The space left by Guinevere's side quickly filled by Gwaine, his hands grasping her shoulders in an attempt to pull her back onto her feet.

The path through the audience seemed even longer with the silence of the theater, all eyes glued to Arthur as he passed table after table of guest. A satisfied nod even coming from Lancelot to add insult to injury. He had lost.

He had lost Guinevere. He had lost any chance of happiness.

The sooner he could forget he had ever tried to return the better.

Without a word he continued his walk towards the stage doors, desperate to break down in the privacy of his suite. Or even better in a cab headed directly to the airport. Anything to keep him from looking back at Guinevere.

Yet he did.

He needed to prove to see her, to remember her as a woman with no love for him, weak and desperate for the slightest bit of attention. That was what he wanted to see when he glanced back.

The woman he saw however, was too broken to even seem capable of hurting anyone else. She stood hunched over in Gwaine's arms trembling. Her microphone barely picking up a hushed conversation between the two.

"Let him go, it's better this way Gwennie, let him go," Gwaine soothed, breaking character to keep every inch of honesty in his voice.

Guinevere shook her head weakly, her hands gripping his shirt in tight fists as she regained her own balance. Not once did she look back down to the audience. Instead her eyes seemed fixed at one of the crumpled bills on the floor below her.

She needed to convince herself the same of Arthur as he was trying to convince himself of her. Both needed to hate the other before they could move on, yet neither could manage to continue on their own.

But Arthur's body was already in motion, and though he would never forgive himself for his actions, he turned back to continue out the front door.

xXx

Backstage the cast stood just as stunned as those onstage. Mordred's gun hung down at his hip still cocked. Percival clenched the curtains near his entrance, begging for a chance to go comfort his leading lady. Merlin stood in the center of it all, watching his friend leave for good.

He had to stop them. There was no chance of Arthur ever getting over Guinevere and there was no guarantee Mithian's escape plan would even succeed.

Frantically he ran around backstage to the cue master, tearing through the script in a last ditch effort to find something, anything, to save them.

As if by magic the original ending slipped out from underneath a stack of papers on the cue master's desk. Their last hope staring up to him in black and white.

Without wasting a single moment he ran to Percival's side, snatching the microphone from his costume, yelling the lyrics on the page as loud as he could manage.

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love! And be loved," he called out. "In return!"

The cut song reverberated against the walls, shaking several cast members before being sent out into the audience with just as much strength.

Merlin couldn't breath as he moved to look out onto stage, Guinevere's face unreadable when she seemed to step away from Gwaine. Arthur's figure frozen in it's place mere feet from the door.

It wasn't enough for to just stall however, one of them had to make a move. He had given them a chance, but whether they could even bring themselves to take it was another matter.

xXx

Guinevere could barely breath, the sound of Merlin's voice shaking her to the bone as it echoed through the theater. The tears staining her cheeks cracked as she slowly repeated the line under her breath. Memories of the original ending, hearing the cut song for the first time, spending an entire night by Arthur's side without sleeping until the early morning all rushed back to before the numerous pills began to take affect.

She could barely make out his silhouette past the glare of the stage lights. She saw no sign of him turning around but he didn't seem to be continuing out the door either. And that was reassurance enough in her doped up mind to step downstage.

Her balance was shaky at best, and the multitude of pills began to kick in early, but she was determined to have a final word. She had to at least make sure he had no chance of forgetting her.

"Never knew, I could feel like this," she whispered, struggling to remember the old song. "It's liked I've never seen the sky before."

For a moment the theater remained silent, Arthur frozen in place, but just as she tentatively began the orchestra picked up their cue as well. Slowly the music began to play, softly at first, but with more strength as the players remembered their original melody.

"_Want to vanish inside your kiss. Everyday I'm loving you more and more,_" she sang as a small smile found it's way onto her lips. Carefully she began to make her way down stage. "_Listen to your heart, can you hear it sing?"_

Arthur seemed to turn back, his profile barely visible.

"_Come back to me." _The smile grew, her voice finding it's strength as she continued. "_And forgive everything!"_

Her balance waivered, forcing her to catch herself as soon as the line had ended. A mixture of emotional distress and a chemically induced calm made her attempt more challenging than it would have been sober but she doubted she could have found the strength to try on her own.

The audience shifted in their seats, all turning to look towards Arthur as a roving spotlight landed on him carefully. His face now aimed back to the stage. The faintest shimmer of tears still present under his eyes as he looked up to Gwen.

"_Seasons may change, winter to spring._" The orchestra paused, giving her a moment to regain her strength. Her voice dropping out of the song to speak directly to Arthur, the whispery quality of her words increasing as she found it harder to force any sound out. "But I love you. Until the end of time."

Her body grew weaker but she forced herself to stand tall. Not once did her gaze leave Arthur's as she prayed to gods she never believed in for him to listen.

"_Come what may_…" his voice called out quietly, causing the audience to latch onto his every move while he began to walk back down the isle. "_Come what may," _he sang louder, his voice far from professional.

But Guinevere couldn't have cared less about what he sounded like. The fact of the matter was he heard her, and she heard him. Her smile had never been wider.

A smile broke out across Arthur's face as he continued, his rough belting filling the theater as he moved closer to a stage mic. The audience ate up his return with gusto, all joining him in their overjoyed expressions. All except for those sitting at the investors table, who even out of the corner of his eye seemed utterly disgusted with the turn of events.

Arthur, however, could focus on nothing else but getting to Guinevere's side.

From the edge of the stage Mithian reached down to help Arthur up, breaking character long enough to pull him back onto the main stage. She too had broken out into a smile, her eyes darting offstage to catch Merlin. A small nod of approval reaching him before she let Arthur go.

The two found each other at center stage. Guinevere's hands reaching out to press against the lapels of Arthur's jacket as if to test if he was real. His hands caressing her waist before holding it tight. Both seemed cautious to hold one another again but found it impossible to go without touching the other.

The orchestra paused again, giving their entire attention to the pair.

_"I will love you_," they sang in unison, fresh tears finding their way into their eyes. "_Until my dying da—"_

A loud crash came from backstage, startling the two from their vow. Without a moment's hesitation Arthur pulled Guinevere into his arms as though he could protect her from whatever unseen danger had scared the crew. There was little doubt in her mind that he would have failed her either.

That is until the distinct click of a pistol being taken off safety was picked up by a stage mic. Vivian's piercing scream alerting the cast to a presence they had managed to forget during the excitement.

"He's got a gun!"

xXx

The entire on stage cast broke down into hysterics. Vivian, along with a handful of younger dancers, ran offstage as quickly as they could manage. The remaining dancers scrambled to get out of the debt collectors path, causing more harm than good as people crashed into one another as they tried to run. Only the seasoned members managed to stay relatively calm.

Relatively.

Mithian stood stage left, having watched Merlin's plan beat hers out. The sense of hope that had been absent since Mordred's return finally began to find it's way back into her heart. She may have even believed there was a chance even she could make it back into the real world in once piece.

It was Vivian's piercing scream that brought her back to reality. There was no breaking Morgana's rules without consequence. Especially not when Mordred laid in wait only a few feet behind the curtain.

Frantically she ran forward, ushering Arthur and Guinevere behind one of the raised set pieces to by them some time. Her eyes darted back to the source of the crash, used props scattering the floor around Mordred as if someone had tried to barricade him backstage.

With a glance to the left she had her suspicions confirmed, seeing Merlin bent over himself, a trickle of blood from a broken lip staining his shirt slowly. His eyes were glued to Mordred's gun as the other man began to make his way onto stage, no longer caring about hiding his job.

As far as the audience was aware the entire situation had been planned. Claiming any death to be staged would have been far too easy.

Mithian refused to move from between him and his target, her resolve completely ready to stare down the barrel of his gun if it meant defying Morgana one final time.

Thankfully she wasn't the only person ready to fight back. The countless times the company had been hurt for profit had given the two owners helped build a significant amount of enemies.

Both Gwaine and Percival moved out of their positions, urging the orchestra to continue playing to hide the threat as they attempted to take the man down. While Gwaine was significantly faster there was nothing to compete with Percival's size. As long as they kept the gun from being fired they had an equal chance at bringing the debt collector down.

The three began to wrestle for possession of the weapon. Percival's strong arms managed to dish out a good beating to the smaller man but he was too bulky to move quickly. Gwaine was significantly smaller than Percival and much quicker at avoiding blows, but his own strikes held much less power.

As long as the gun stayed in Mordred's control he held the upper hand. Even the two men couldn't risk standing in front of the barrel for more than a moment. All Mordred needed to do was land one blow with the butt of his gun against Gwaine's nose and he would be left dealing with the stronger man on his own.

A pained yelp came from the smaller man as exactly that played out. One blow to Gwaine's nose and he was beside himself in pain, clutching around the broken cartilage in an attempt to keep the damage from increasing. Despite himself he was forced to leave Percival alone for just a moment. But the moment was more than enough time for Mordred to force the man away with the steadying of his pistol.

He was going to win.

Without taking a moment to consider what she was about to do Mithian ran over to the two as fast as she could manage. Her shoe finding it's way into her dominate hand before cracking down against the back of his head with all the force she could muster. The impact stunned Percival as they both watched the man fall to the ground.

The gun slipping out of his hands only to find itself sliding down stage onto the dance floor below.

One shot discharged from the force of its landing, blowing a hole into a speaker miraculously without injuring anyone. However many rounds were left was unknown but as long as the gun lay unmanned the potential for it to become dangerous remained too high for comfort.

Regaining control over her body Mithian kicked her second shoe off, hurrying down to the dance floor as fast as she could manage. The distance from center stage and the dance floor however, was much longer than the distance between the dance floor and the investor's table. Mithian ran but not fast enough.

All Lancelot needed to do was stand and the gun found its way into his hands, silencing even the orchestra as he regarded the weapon carefully.

Halfway to the table Mithian froze, her gaze cutting back up stage. Both Guinevere and Arthur remained beside the raised set piece, his entire body working to shield her as they watched the investor terrified. Guinevere's grip on his arms shook visibly in pure terror.

Even Lancelot had to have noticed.

Returning her gaze to Lancelot she attempted to move into the line of fire, but he had already returned the gun to point at the ground. The cold expression on his face melting away into one of utter defeat slowly.

" You can't have her," Mithian muttered, barely loud enough to be heard.

She didn't need to tell him what he already knew but she'd be damned if Morgana went without hearing it as well.

Lancelot's dark brown eyes returned to the gun as he turned it over in his hands. With a skilled ease he emptied it of the remaining rounds, dropping the bullet shells onto the floor between him and the stage. The empty weapon had a more significant place.

A place directly in front of Morgana's seat as his table before he took his leave. He had admitted defeat. There was no point in him killing the woman he had tried to buy, that wouldn't bring her back to him.

Morgana had lost.

Applause roared through the theater as Lancelot took his leave, tailed quickly by Morgana's desperate attempt to save herself from the consequences of her actions. Mithian considered stopping her but there was no need.

Even someone only partially related to the Pendragon's couldn't hide from the press for too long. She'd be back in handcuffs before Mithian bruised herself chasing after her.

The orchestra began to play an improvised ending, doing their best to keep the audience's excitement going as the remaining cast members reveled in their victory. Bows were taking out of order but taken nonetheless. For a moment Mithian forgot where she was, feeding on the audience's love as if it was more precious than air.

The applause dedicated to her however, was nothing compared to the audiences reaction of Arthur and Guinevere sharing one final kiss, not even caring to give the theater a proper bow. The sound was deafening, cheering and cat calls breaking out as Arthur picked her up in his arms when leaning down became too much of a hassle.

And for the first time Mithian didn't mind sharing the spotlight. In fact, even she joined in the applause.

The cheering continued even after the curtain fell, the audience practically begging for an encore as Mithian moved back up to the main stage.

The cast poured out from their hiding places as Percival restrained the knocked out debt collector with ease. Gwaine's broken nose being tended to quickly by one of the female dancers before Merlin took over, giving him a scrap of someone's costume to stop the bleeding before the two moved to congratulate Guinevere and Arthur.

A smile broke out across Mithian's face as she moved to join them before she noticed that Gwen's shaking had yet to subside. In fact it seemed to have only gotten more violent.

The smile faded when Mithian remembered their original plan, knowing all too well the shaking was much worse than just a fearful tremble.

xXx

Pure joy. The sight of both Lancelot and Morgana leaving the theater inspired a multitude of emotions inside Arthur, but pure joy was by far the strongest. He had been so close to giving up when Guinevere pulled him back. So close to losing her forever but there she stood, staring up to him with just as much adoration for him as he had for her.

It was almost too good to be true.

With the rest of company moving in around them he was forced to lower her feet back to the ground, stealing one hard kiss before resting his forehead against hers. His hands knotted themselves in her hair as he smiled, kissing anywhere he could reach before he became aware of her trembling beneath his hands.

Pulling back for a moment he smiled down to her, figuring the shock of everything had just proven too much.

"You're safe, we're both safe," he reassured, his smile fading when he saw the far away look in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

She smiled faintly before staring past his face entirely, her eyes unable to focus on whatever they were reaching for before she closed them entirely. Her grip on his shoulders slipped, her legs buckling underneath her before she fell to the floor.

Quickly he grabbed her lowering her down carefully, keeping her pressed against his chest as he knelt down as well. The smile on her face had gone out completely as she muttered incoherently, barely able to keep her body from slumping over.

Something was very, very wrong.

Around him he saw the company beginning to stop their celebration, all eyes pinned onto Guinevere as if they knew something he didn't. Even Merlin watched helplessly as he felt her body still beside him.

'_She's really sick_,' a voice echoed in Arthur's head as he locked eyes with his friend for a moment.

Her body slowly began to lose heat as she stopped moving entirely, her head lulling back against his shoulder when she could no longer support it's weight.

"No…" Merlin turned to order Percival out of the theater, his already pasty complexion loosing its color as he moved over to Arthur's side. "Merlin what's going on?" He asked urgently.

Merlin didn't speak. A short shake of the head communicating far more than any explanation would have.

He got to stay with her, but he was still losing her.

Frantically he pushed her hair off her face, trying his hardest to wake her as his heart dropped to his stomach.

_ No._

She grew colder.

_No._

He couldn't tell if she was breathing.

He may have already lost her.

"Guinevere!"

* * *

**Song used:**

**Come What May (reprise)- Moulin Rouge!**

**Thank you all for staying with me this far.**


	19. Chapter 19

Finale

_There are some born to shine who can't do it alone,_

_so protect them and take special care _

* * *

"Guinevere…"

No one spoke once the pair fell to their knees. The smaller frame tucked against the larger's side as he clung to her, one hand knotted in her hair as the other clung to her shoulder in an attempt to keep her up-right. Deep black curls fell around his face as he hid the tears that were now falling from the rest of the company.

It wasn't until the paramedics arrived—led by Percival—that he could even be brought to release whatever was left. No one wanted to say that they had lost her and the paramedics refused to call anything so soon, but at the same time they knew what damage must have been done regardless.

Instinctively Arthur moved to follow her out regardless. He even managed to walk out to the ambulance before being turned away. He was not family. He was nothing as far as the crew was concerned. The most he was given to hold onto was an address to the hospital and the sliver of hope that something could be done.

While he watched the ambulance drive away with the one thing in the world he couldn't bare to lose the faint sound of police siren's could be heard from the entrance to the theater. Mordred was bound to be waking up soon, but there was at least the guarantee it would be behind bars. Morgana had vacated the premises within minutes, but even she couldn't hide forever.

With the growing awareness of something gone wrong by the audience and the other resort members there would be no place any of them could run soon. As long as Guinevere was away from the chaos there was already a better chance of her returning to him. At least that was what he had to tell himself. He couldn't allow himself to picture what would happen if the went to find an empty hospital bed.

He couldn't. Not so soon after he had just gotten her back.

He had so much he needed to apologize for. For the things he said, for how he wanted to hurt her, for how he acted, for leaving, for everything. He had acted blindly and only thought about whichever emotion held the most power over him at the time. If he lost her before getting to say any of that he would hate himself, he knew he would.

If she truly left without him getting out a proper 'I love you', he doubted he could ever manage one again.

Back inside the theater Merlin watched as Mordred was dragged out barely conscious, Mithian explaining to the police what had occurred without leaving out a single detail. She included their plans to fake an overdose, the gun, the fight in front of the audience, every detail. It no longer mattered what she was caught for. She was free from Morgana.

She had nothing to fear any more. She was finally free.

Despite this fact, however, her constant glances back to the exit door proved to Merlin that her freedom was no longer the only thing she was concerned for. Guinevere was stuck in limbo somewhere and that was where she wanted to be.

And if Merlin was honest with himself it was where he wanted to be as well.

He could only imagine how Arthur was taking having to leave her, so he allowed him time on his own. Someone needed to help clean up the mess. His job was no longer emotional support; someone had to appease the officers badgering Mithian.

Giving her a chance to escape he took her place, answering whatever question he was posed with the utmost honesty.

The officers asked who Mordred was and Merlin explained the business. He began to describe how Morgana would sell the girls without making it outright prostitution. How she'd win them over and turn on them once they could no longer back out. How the investors were told the girls agreed, how some of them did, how some of them were convinced to agree.

The only detail he didn't share was where Guinevere and Arthur had gone. The last thing either of them needed was more harassment. He'd protect them regardless of who was asking. Thankfully the police pushed no farther.

They had a case to build against Morgana once they had found her. If they needed testimony from the two they would be able to find them at a later date.

It wasn't as though having the Pendragon name made it easy to hide. A fact Uther Pendragon will no doubt hate the moment the story reached newsstands. He would try to cover it up, Merlin knew Arthur's father that well, and he would go through any expense to protect his company.

The theater full of newly shocked audience members however, would be far more talkative. Poor Morgana wouldn't even have the chance to benefit from all the free publicity. None of the shows had ever managed to make national headlines before.

Hopefully none would ever do so again.

Once the theater began to calm down Arthur returned. His somber expression fighting between one of anger about being left or one of morning the loss he refused to admit possible. The only thing Merlin could do was to stand beside his friend as they watched the audience empty.

Stagehands slowly began to reappear, cleaning off the finale sets, doing the only thing they knew to do in order to keep some sense of normalcy going. The show must go on even though it had ended. If they stopped they'd have to come to terms with what had happened. It was much simpler to just go back to work.

Arthur said nothing as he watched them, his fist pressed lightly against his chin, no doubt smelling faintly off the perfume from Guinevere's hair. He had nothing to hold onto but the stage. She had nothing of her own to give him so he had to keep what he had.

His blue eyes burned red from the tears he would deny having cried if Merlin had mentioned. His usual pout fixed in a stiff line, determined to reveal nothing as he waited in a limbo much like Guinevere's.

The only difference lay in the fact that Guinevere would be able to find peace if she never returned. She was free, she had Arthur for a moment, and she belonged to no one. It wasn't much, but she was never one for needing much.

Arthur was greedy. Arthur needed his life; he needed what he had built for himself. He needed her. There was only one way he could come out of limbo in one peace and that was with Guinevere.

There was no doubt in Merlin's mind that he would spend the rest of his life repaying Guinevere for how greedy he could be. If he were to need her he would do everything in his power to make sure she wanted to stay with him. There would be no man working harder to insure a woman's happiness.

He had the resources to make that happen, if he wanted to he could do nearly anything with his position and his money, but he still couldn't see Guinevere. He still couldn't ensure she would come back. He was useless without her.

All he could do was wait, watching the stage that had come to mean so much to him in so little time.

For the first night since the resort opened there was no curtain call.

xXx

"So… Are you sure this is the right place?"

"How many LeoDegrace's do you think are walking around the city, Merlin?" Arthur attempted his usual belittling, his voice too weak for any real sting to take place. "She's in one of those rooms and they wont tell me which until she's stable."

"I think I heard the nurse say 'if'," Merlin muttered under his breath as he sat down beside Arthur.

Arthur knew what the nurse had said. He had been the one visiting the hospital every day for a week since the show closed. Every day he had to listen to the nurses try to cover whatever condition Guinevere was in. She wasn't gone, but by their refusal to tell him anything more he doubted it was something they expected to last. They asked for any family, to which he could only give her brother's name and the fact he was in the military.

Guinevere was alone and they wouldn't even let him through the door. He knew very well what the nurses had to say about his constant visits.

It was always, "_You should go home, Mr. Pendragon."_ Or "_If anything changes we'll call the doctor first, Mr. Pendragon." _Even one _"Maybe you should see our grief counselor, Mr. Pendragon._"

He knew there was no change in Guinevere's condition; he had nothing to grieve as long as there was still the chance he hadn't lost her. As the days past, however, the chance seemed to grow smaller and smaller.

"Have you spoken to Mithian recently?" he asked, desperate to distract himself as he began examining the speckled paint in the floor tiles for the fifth time that day.

Reclining back on the waiting room chair Merlin tried his best to make himself comfortable. Despite their frequent visits they had yet to find more comfortable seating than the rather stiff chairs covered in prints from a decade ago. Merlin was starting to believe the nurses were hiding the comfortable chairs just to make Arthur go home.

"Not since they started going through Morgana's office. She's trying to find a place to stay with some of the other dancer's Morgana had been paying for since they weren't exactly renting rooms with legal money," he said, checking through the messages on his phone. "She did tell me to call her if anything happens over here. She's blaming herself for how long its taking for Gwen to come out of this."

"Wasn't it her plan to take those damn pills in the first place?" Arthur asked, a scowl slowly appearing on his face.

"She didn't plan for her to take so many. We didn't know if you were coming back, if Morgana thought she was dead we wouldn't have to worry about her winding up with Lancelot." The defensive tone in Merlin's voice didn't go unnoted. Arthur knew better than to try and blame someone. "No one forced Guinevere to do anything. You never saw how destructive she had gotten."

"…But that much was my fault, wasn't it?"

"Well you certainly didn't help anything."

The pair grew quiet. Neither wanted to offend the other and frankly there were too many opportunities to hurt the other to continue talking for much longer. Their only safety zone seemed to be the flat where Leon had taken to staying after news of the story broke. He would at least slap some sense into the two when they began arguing.

Leon had decided to stay at the resort once the story reached national headlines. Traveling anywhere was far too much of a hassle with the press around so for the time being they were all stuck waiting on a sign to leave the area. Uther himself had extended paid leave to both Arthur and Leon once he saw his son's face plastered across newsstands throughout their hometown.

His gratuity did not come without a price however; as the story printed did little to leave out Guinevere's position in the scandal or how Arthur publicly attempted to pay her off during the show. Had Leon not been around to intercept the phone calls there may have been a second story released about a Pendragon disowning.

Though Morgana's name in the papers had already begun to be printed as Morgana Le Fay thanks to a few anonymous donations from a very influential person. The official name change was bound to happen the moment she was taken into custody.

For the second time since they had arrived at the hospital the waiting room television began to replay a news story about the resort. The reporter's chemically whitened smile doing whatever it could to paint Guinevere as a mindless starlet though the few clips of footage they had shot their story down before their words had time to sink in.

One clip came from a rehearsal before Arthur had left. A greeting recorded shakily on someone's phone as they went throughout the cast. All Guinevere had to do was smile and the world would have fallen in love with her.

The second clip came from opening night, assumed to have been recorded by the same person. There was a pan of the preparations backstage before she came into view beside Mithian. Her body had visibly weakened, her eyes appeared duller, when asked for a smile she could only manage a weak wave. It was just as easy for her to steal hearts as it was for her to break them.

"Merlin," Arthur finally spoke up. "Did she hate me?"

The question caught Merlin off guard, distracting him from the broadcast the moment he heard it. He looked to the larger man to see if he was joking but found nothing but large blue eyes looking back to him. Arthur was large enough to rival any man save for Percival yet at that moment he seemed so weak. For once in his life, he seemed small.

"She never did. She made you leave because she wanted to save you," he said slowly, resting his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I don't think she could hate anyone. I think she even believed Mordred to have some redeeming quality."

"Like what?"

"Well he was loyal to Morgana, and as far as I know he helped the show once you had left." Merlin shook his head. "It doesn't matter anymore though, he's not getting out of jail anytime soon with Mithian's testimony against him."

"But you're sure she never hated me?"

"Arthur, you two hate yourselves more than you could ever hate each other. She never hated you."

The words did little to comfort Arthur, but they did make the broadcast less painful to watch. Before they new it the reporter had changed topics to a local woman finding something strange in her tap water and the waiting room around them had begun to filter out. Soon they would be asked to leave officially.

They'd take a taxi to the resort, avoid the press and wait until they were allowed back. That had been the routine for days and nothing short of a miracle would keep Arthur from waiting as close to Guinevere as he could.

Nothing short of a miracle or a tired nurse approaching them rather frazzled.

"Mr. Pendragon?" she asked.

Arthur's head shot up faster than Merlin had seen him move in days.

"The doctors haven't seen any change in the past twenty-four hours. You can at least see her before you leave."

Merlin could have sworn he caught Arthur ready to run after the nurse.

xXx

Miles of wires and tubes covered the room where Guinevere slept. The small bed underneath her still managed to seem large compared to her frail frame. Dozens of monitors had been stuck all across her body. An IV attached to her wrist dangled from the edge of the bed while her hand hung limp. Thankfully she seemed to be trusted to breath on her own, but the oxygen mask hung from the bed frame above her regardless.

If it wasn't for the constant beeping of the heart monitor she would barely have looked alive. It was terrifying.

"Visiting hours are almost over, I'll be back when it's time for you to leave." The nurse checked a few charts before heading out of the room.

Arthur's knees became weak. His hands grasped the railing of her bed as he tried to figure out whether or not he could touch her. She was a petite woman from the day he met her, but she had never looked so breakable before. Without the layers of stage makeup the damage that had been done during their time apart became obvious.

Gingerly he picked her hand up from the side of the bed, holding it in his owns as tightly as he dared. His hands covered hers with ease that scared him. She shouldn't feel so small. She had never seemed so small before.

He remembered noting her hourglass shape, how the dancing sculpted her calves though she hated their size, she had always been petite but she had never seemed small. Seeing her as small more unsettling than any number of wires protruding from her body.

"This is all my fault…" he muttered, bringing her hand up to his lips as he spoke, clinging to it as if he could warm her up on his own. "I was such an ass. I never should have left, I should have known, I should have done something. I knew what was going on but I still didn't know enough to help you. God, I'm such an idiot."

Merlin stayed in the back of the room, making sure to keep a close eye out for the nurse in order to give the two some privacy.

Arthur's eyesight began to blur when Guinevere made no sign of waking up.

"Please, please come back. I need you," he whispered. "I need you here. I'm not strong on my own. I-I've always needed someone else. Merlin, work, my father, but they aren't you. I'll do anything. I just need you back."

For the first time since she had been taken away tears began to stain his cheeks. His grip on her hand shaking as he held tighter. He had come so close to losing her and was still waiting to hear the verdict. His world was frozen around one person and there was guarantee it could survive if she could not.

"I love you," he finally managed, kissing her hand hard. "I-I love you with all my heart. Please don't leave me." His tears began to make speech difficult. All he could do was mutter the same sentence over and over again.

_Please don't leave me._

_Please._

The faint sound of the nurse heading down the hallway began to grow louder between the melodic beeps of the monitor. She'd have to pry his hands away just to get him up from the side of the bed.

_I love you._

_Please._

Merlin left the room, attempting to delay the nurse.

_With all my heart._

"Arthur..?" a faint voice muttered.

His eyes shot up, his grip on her hand tightening. He couldn't even breath as he prayed that he hadn't begun to hallucinate.

"I love you," he said against her hand, watching her face intensely.

"_Until my…dying day…_" Her voice came out strained, in desperate need of a cup of water, but it was hers. She even attempted a smile.

"But that's not for a while," he said, tears blurring his vision as the largest smile he had ever known broke out across his face. "Not for a long, long time."

Her smile grew and as best as she could, she returned the grip on her hand.

"I promise."


	20. Chapter 20

Encore

_Please say that you wont; I pray that you don't forget me_

* * *

"Gwen… Gwen, wake up you're crushing me."

Light poured in through the wide bay windows of Arthur's apartment. Days of little to no sleep at the hospital had taken their toll before a final release date stamped down on Guinevere's file. As soon as the doctor agreed she was fit to travel tickets were bought and a plane flight was scheduled, there wasn't even a full night's sleep before they took off.

It was only fair that Guinevere took her revenge by using Arthur as her own personal pillow until she had the opportunity to buy her own pillows. She had no plans to go shopping any time soon.

"Don't wanna…" she muttered, her arms tightening around his neck as she kept the majority of her weight across his chest. "Go back to sleep."

Underneath Guinevere's slowly strengthening frame lay Arthur, squirming to try and shift the constant weight away. Though his complaints and general discomfort would make it seem as though he was actually meant what he said. The dopey smile across his half-sleeping face, however, could not belong to a man more content with his position.

Never before had he considered the job title "human pillow" to be one he could enjoy.

"Then just scoot over would you? I can't feel my arms."

A disgruntled groan came from his partner as she slowly maneuvered herself off his chest, tucking against his side expertly to keep from leaving in entirely. The sunlight pouring into the room danced off her caramel skin, the pink undertones finally returning after the hospital cleaned out the last of Morgana's influence over her. Dark brown curls spiraled down across her forehead, having escaped from the braid they had been tied in the night before.

For such an innocent face there was no hiding her dislike for mornings.

"Why don't you have curtains?" she asked, hiding her head against the crook of his neck.

"I don't exactly stay here often, and when I do I have to work." Guinevere scoffed. "Believe it or not I do have a real job."

"First time I've heard about it." She opened one eye to peer over to Arthur with a smile. "You don't have to work now do you?"

"As far as they're concerned I'm sick," Arthur said with a smile, adding an obviously fake cough.

Gwen's laughter tickled against Arthur's neck, her tired scowl slowly melting into a smile. The remnants of her time in the theater had begun to fade. With any luck she'd fully recover by the end of the month.

It didn't matter to Arthur how long it took her though. He'd be by her side until the world around them fell apart. He could handle a month's worth of early morning cuddles if that was what she needed.

There was even the possibility for Merlin to bring them breakfast in bed as long as it wasn't Arthur who asked.

He couldn't have imagined a more pleasing situation to wake up to.

"And what about when I'm okay, how am I going to keep you in bed? I don't want to lose my pillow to your stupid job," Gwen pouted.

Arthur couldn't help himself. "There are a lot of ways to convince me to stay in bed, Guinevere." He barely got a chance to laugh before having a real pillow shoved against his face.

"You're an idiot," she giggled, kissing his shoulder happily.

Pushing the pillow off his face Arthur turned over towards Guinevere, wrapping his arms around her lightly to keep her close to his side. His lips doting all over her forehead, her cheeks, pointedly going over anywhere but her mouth. Laughter peeled from her full lips as she attempted to pull out from under Arthur's arm.

Since they had returned this was all their mornings had consisted of. One of them, usually Gwen, would fall asleep on the other. Punishment for the person on top normally consisted of tight cuddles, kisses, and on one particularly energetic occasion nonstop tickling until they had fallen off the bed entirely. The end of each small fight always ended the same though.

Thankfully Merlin had given up on coming in the room before noon entirely to avoid walking in on anything he didn't want to see.

Some days he didn't even bother calling until two just in case.

They had no intentions of returning to the real world any faster than need be, and frankly they had more than their fair share of it for quite a long time. The only reason either could think to leave the comfort of their bedroom was to go out to eat or to see if anything significantly different had occurred in Morgana's case. So far the most they had heard was that she had been located somewhere in the Midwest.

As long as she was far away from their bed as possible they could have cared less.

They were together. They were safe. That was all they needed.

xXx

"Did you read the front page today?" Merlin asked over the breakfast he had brought in.

Guinevere's freshly showered hair filled the room with the scent of lavenders and Arthur's pleasantly satisfied smile already answered his question. He knew better than to ask if they had done anything productive while he had been busy working. He had made that mistake before only to receive a rather snarky remark about how much time Arthur had to make up for wasting which, along with a rather embarrassed giggle from Gwen, put an image in his head that took days to get out.

The only safe topics were casual news, Arthur's father, and errands Guinevere felt guilty about asking Merlin to run.

"We had a late start." Merlin held back a laugh. "Why?"

"Just news about Morgana's case, nothing too important. She managed to sell out that Agravaine man as one of her partners so the list of people angry with her keeps growing. Her trial's supposed to be in a few months."

"Good," Guinevere spoke up, swirling her cup of coffee around while waiting for it to cool. "Has anyone gotten a hold of Lancelot?"

"Not that I've heard of. Last Mithian heard about him he had fled to South America. It's not like he could do anything besides testify against her anyway. You haven't changed your mind about that by the way, have you?" Merlin asked.

"No. The last thing I want is to have to speak to her again even if it's just in court." Arthur draped an arm across her shoulders in support. "Mithian has much more to convict her with than I do. I'll watch the trial on television."

Merlin nodded, not wanting to push the issue any more than necessary. As far as prosecuting the old theater went Arthur and Mithian were the biggest aggressors. Guinevere and several of the other dancers, however, wanted nothing more than to put their old lives behind them. No one would push them to fight something they had just escaped.

It was simply the fact Mithian had lost so much of her life because of Morgana and the fact that so much of Arthur's had been put at risk of being lost that they found it so imperative to fight against. Arthur would be lying if he said he didn't want to put her behind bars for Guinevere's sake and Mithian would be lying if she denied wanting payback for the years lost. Either way they both refused to give up until every person responsible for what had gone wrong with the theater had paid their dues.

"Speaking of Mithian, did she tell you two the news?" Merlin perked up, feeling the need to change the topic.

"We've been busy," Arthur said with a smile, earning himself a nudge in the ribs from Guinevere.

"What happened, Merlin?" Gwen chuckled.

"Well with all the press you guys have been getting some other people have started to take interest and the people who made it to the opening show really loved it and have been talking about it non-stop." Merlin smiled. "There's even this one really funny video of when Mithian hit Mordred with her shoe mixed to some stupid music and everyone at work has been sharing it around—"

"Merlin! Get to the point would you?" Arthur held back a chuckle.

"Right, sorry. Anyway the show and her face have been going around and some guy out in New York got a hold of it and found her through the papers so she's heading out there in a few weeks to talk to them about setting up a new show without needing any skeevy investors!" Merlin's smile lit up the room with a childlike innocence.

The fact the show had been picked up surprised Guinevere more than she had expected any news from the theater might. There had always been the talk about moving it to a bigger audience but that was back with Morgana's drive and Lancelot's money. She had never considered there would be any support coming in from legitimate sources.

She felt as though she should have found the news exciting, but in all honesty the idea of returning to stage made her physically ill.

The trauma from what she had been pushed into was too strong for her to just go back to that much stress so soon. Recovery would take time away from the theater. The last thing she wanted was to have to go back so soon.

"Is she excited?" she managed.

"Thrilled! She's always wanted a chance on a real stage like that," Merlin chimed. "You two should come see it when it's up!"

Guinevere perked up. "So you mean she doesn't need me?"

"Well I mean she wants the lead for herself, you don't mind do you?"

The small woman began to laugh, relief softening her features into one of the loveliest smiles Merlin had seen in quite some time. Recovery was working. Or Arthur was. Or both. Probably both.  
"Not at all! When would they have it?"

"Probably near Christmas time, we could go stay and all have a little Christmas together!" Merlin's eyes widened in excitement "We could make Arthur dress up as Santa!"

With a tilt of the head Gwen tried to picture her strong partner in a fat man's suit much to his displeasure. She broke down into hysterics within the first thirty seconds.

"Oh very funny," Arthur said, watching his two friends laugh at his expense. "The last thing I'd do is up in some stupid red suit."

"No but a red superman cape for Halloween is much better," Merlin retorted through his laughter.

A slight pink tint began to spread across Arthur's cheeks in embarrassment. Guinevere's laughter only grew louder.

"It was a knight's cape you idiot." His argument did little to stop the ridicule. "At least I can come up with something better than dressing up like an old man every year."

Now it was Merlin's turn to become embarrassed, the tips of his rather large ears turning pink as he attempted to slow his laughter.

"It's a wizard! Everyone loves a wizard!"

"And everyone loves a knight!"

The two began to harp on one another like they had before Morgana complicated their lives. The verbal abuse thrown back and forth began to grow increasingly incoherent as they struggled to think of something while holding back laughter at their own jokes. For two grown men they argued very much like children.

Their efforts were rewarded, not by a winner, but by Guinevere slipping from her position at Arthur's side to the ground. Her hands clutched her sides as she gasped for air, her laughter making it difficult to do anything besides admit defeat.

Soon the two men joined her, finding her predicament just as hilarious as she had found theirs.

That was how she would manage recovery, she realized. She had Arthur and she had Merlin, and somewhere not too far to reach by phone she had Mithian. She had found herself a family from the hardest of situations.

That alone was more comfort than any amount of sedative.

xXx

Months past as the world began to move on from Camelot's old scandal. New people caused new problems in new places and the media refocused its attention. Morgana and her partners had been arrested, each receiving significant time behind bars though some bargained their way into more comfortable stays. Money was still money, even from tainted hands. But none of that mattered. Morgana could no longer hurt any of the dancers and that was the only concern those who still remembered what happened had.

Merlin had begun to spend a significant amount of time in New York with the new cast, traveling between the two cities to keep up with both his old friends and the new people from the theater he had truly begun to enjoy. As a result Guinevere and Arthur's lives slowly began to calm down into a peaceful domesticity that neither had experienced before. The earlier laughter remained in the apartment but on a much smaller scale.

There was not the constant need to speak, and by the time Arthur returned to work Guinevere even found herself in need of a few moments to herself every now and again. Never once did they forget what each other meant to them. Their relationship simply grew from lovesick youths to partners in every sense of the word. Guinevere had even become a well-known figure at the office, which thankfully had nothing to do with the occasional visit she would have during his lunch hour that never really involved their going out to eat.

Even Uther Pendragon appreciated having Gwen around. Try as hard as he might to find a fault with his son's partner by the time the story had died down there was nothing for him to hold against her. She was a part of the family and he would simply have to come to terms with that development.

Their lives progressed slowly, with Arthur working during the week while Guinevere began to take up real dance classes when she found herself starting to miss certain aspects of the theater. Some nights she would even call Mithian to talk about the progress of the Broadway show, her voice almost envious. The difference between what Mithian had begun to do and what Guinevere had entered with was the amount of training needed. Being pretty could only get someone so far.

With Arthur's help she began to entertain the idea of going back to school for something in the arts. A feat she never could have afforded on her own.

She could only imagine how pleased her parents would have been to meet the man who loved her enough to support her in whatever she wanted to do. Nothing could match her appreciation for him, but theirs would have come damn close.

As time went on and seasons changed Merlin's visits began to be replaced with the occasional phone call as a small group of actors in New York began to take interest in him closer to the opening of the show. All he could really relay was that he had begun to understand what was so bewitching about the theater and that he couldn't wait for the pair to come visit.

And after what seemed like ages, they finally managed to snag a flight over in time for the opening, intentionally picking a hotel separate from one of Camelot's chains. The last thing they needed was a reminder of the past.

"I don't understand how come Merlin could just tell us what to wear, its such a bother trying to find out one our own," Arthur complained, fiddling with one of his silk ties.

"He's not in charge of dressing you, darling. Besides it's the opening night, of course you're supposed to get dressed up." Guinevere's voice carried over from the open bathroom. "All you have to do is put on a suit anyway, once you have to curl your hair then you can come complain to me about getting ready."

"You don't have to do your hair though," Arthur mused, walking to the bathroom, wrapping his arms around Guinevere's waist as she worked on her makeup. "I love when it's down all loose and messy."

"Because you make it messy," she chuckled.

"I'm not going to deny that." He kissed her neck playfully, pulling her close as soon as she had finished getting ready for the most part.

Guinevere could only chuckle. "Stop being an ass and zip of my dress for me. I don't want to be late."

Holding back a comment about how much more he would enjoy unzipping the dress Arthur obliged. The cascading layers of tight violet silk hung snug against Guinevere's hips, pooling at the ground despite the tall heels she had bought just for the occasion. At Arthur's request she had found a dress with sleeves that hung down from her shoulders, flashing bare skin from the top of its bodice to the deep scoop of it's back. The sleeves on her forearms acted more as a decoration than anything else as the boning of the bodice was more than strong enough to hold her ample cleavage.

Though she had no need to find a dress for anyone but herself, she couldn't resist finding one with just enough skin showing to give Arthur a hard time focusing if he lost interest in the musical. He was always much more fun in bed if he had felt as though he had been holding himself back in public. And besides, she really enjoyed the color of the dress.

As soon as they had managed to pull themselves away from each other's side long enough to check the time they began the quick trip to the theater, having a car waiting at the entrance to their hotel. Merlin and the others had promised to meet them at the theater so they had no one to wait on. The quiet before the show was something they savored more than either of them realized at first.

The last time they were preparing for an opening night they had both almost lost everything, even if the circumstances were vastly different there was no way to erase what had happened from their minds. The most they could do was hold onto one another tightly as they made their way into the theater.

Camera's flashed the moment they stepped out of the car. The flutter of excited paparazzi attempted to slow their walk into the lobby but over the months with the story plaster to every major news network in the country they had grown quite accustomed to how to avoid such distractions. The most they gave was a smile and a quick kiss between the two before finding their tickets.

Guinevere had purposefully asked to avoid any booth seating. The last thing she wanted was memories of her old show resurfacing.

"What have they changed the title to?" Arthur asked, looking through the playbill absentmindedly.

"If you actually read the thing you'd know," Gwen laughed, looking over her own with much more care.

Above a glossy photo of Mithian turning away from a man presenting her with an expensive array of jewels was a bright yellow bar, filled with the name of the theater and in bold lettering the words "COME WHAT MAY". With a small smile on her face Gwen opened the playbill to the first page, finding the smiling face's of the cast looking back up to her.

The words "For Arthur and Guinevere, until our closing day," printed across the bottom of the photo shined up through the glossy sheen.

"They didn't change much," she said with a smile, small tears starting to form out of appreciation. "They just got rid of what Morgana and Lancelot wanted."

"That's good," Arthur mused, watching as the lights began to dim.

Guinevere's hand found it's way to his, pulling it up to kiss his knuckles happily, not caring when her lipstick smudges.

"They've dedicated it to us."

xXx

The show went off without any complications. Small features changed the first act, fitting it better into a real theater without losing the story. Mithian, completely free from any bit of Morgana's influence, shone brighter than they had ever seen her before. By the end of the first act even Arthur found himself emotionally attached to the story even though he had Guinevere in his arms beside him.

By the end of the second act each member of the audience sat at the edge of their seat, watching in shock as the two male leads came to a head over who Mithian would leave with. The fight mimicked that of the old show except when the gun came into play it wasn't deflected. Mithian's character fell in the line of fire to protect the man she loved, and in a heart-wrenching duet she died. There wasn't a dry eye in the theater.

The grip on Arthur's hands tightened as Guinevere pulled his hand close to her chest, her head resting against his shoulder as they watched the storyline wrap itself up. With one final assurance of his love the club owner promised to never forget what had happened, to never forget what he had lost.

And with that assurance the finale music began to play.

The sets moved away, leaving Mithian standing alone in a crisp white gown in the center of an empty stage. With a small sigh she began her final number. Tears blatantly visible to the entire theater as she sang. And for just a moment Guinevere could have sworn she smiled to her.

"…_Forget every man who I ever met, 'cause they only live to control. For a kiss they paid a thousand yet, they paid fifty cents for my soul. They took their piece! The price of fame that no one can repay, but they didn't buy me when they bought my name and that is why I pray…"_ Mithian's face lit up, her feet rooted to the ground, as she found she no longer had the need to move around.

All she needed was her voice and she had the entire audience transfixed.

"_When you see someone's hurt and in need of a hand, don't forget me,_" her voice belted through the theater. "_Please say that you won't; I pray that you don't forget me…_"

Guinevere's eyes began to water, Mithian's plea finding it's way into her heart not only because of the story but because of how much she knew Mithian believed what she was saying. She had sung about loving Arthur and she meant every word. Mithian sung about being remembered, and the devotion was the same.

"_When you look to the heavens with someone you love, and a light's shining bright from afar,_" she sang out, tears beginning to stream down her porcelain cheeks. "_Hope you see my face there, and then offer a prayer. And please let me be._

_"Let me be that star!"_

When the curtains went down, no one applauded louder than Guinevere.

* * *

**Song used:**

**Don't Forget Me- NBC's SMASH**

**A.N.: Thank you. Thank you so much.**


End file.
